by Sydney Berk '13, Encino, Calif.
Catawba College's steamy and bold production of "References to Salvador Dali Make Me Hot" opens at 7:30 p.m. February 6 and runs through February 9 in Catawba College's Florence Busby Corriher Theatre. Catawba's Blue Masque, the largest and oldest student club on campus, takes theatre-goers to a new world of magical realism during the course of this comedy drama.
The stage is set: Barstow, California, at night. The moon plays the piano, something lush and sentimental, as a coyote seduces a house cat. The moon whispers night poetry and sings entrancing boleros to Gabriela, who is sick with a broken heart. She spends her nights pacing her backyard, deeply missing her husband, a soldier away at war. The 14-year-old boy next door, Martin, fumbles over, trying to entrance Gabriela, but she is busy staring up at the stars. The play both begins and ends with this surrealist dreamscape centered around Gabriela, the woman everyone is lusting for.
When Gabriela's husband Benito returns home, the mood shifts and the audience gets a close look at Gabriela's struggle with her husband, a man broken by a carnivorous war. The play becomes a domestic drama as lovers try to understand each other and ponder if one can ever really solve the mystery of another's heart.
Oscar-nominated and Obie Award winning playwright Jose Rivera says that taking plays beyond realism is what makes them most special. "We're bombarded by realism [in film and television] 24-7. We know it, we see it, we have it all around us. If the theater is going to offer us anything that's different, it needs to exploit the possibilities of the theatrical.
"Another way to heighten reality is through language. It can be poetic, dense, full of imagery. That is why I would rather go to a play than watch TV."
"References to Salvador Dali Make Me Hot" is directed by senior Sydney Berk of Encino, Calif. Catawba Theatre Arts Professor Dayna A. Anderson serves as Blue Masque advisor for the production. The world Rivera visualized for his play is masterfully created by student designers including set designer Brooke Beall of Raleigh; lighting designer Chris Speer of Hamptonville; costume designer Dominique Clarke of Kannapolis; and sound designer Gyo Gamble of Concord. Wrangling the team are stage managers Maggie Saunders of Huntington, W. Va., and Cody Mangum of Concord. Technicians for the show are Gyo Gamble of Concord and Tynia Brandon of Charlotte.
Fearless cast members include Kylie Beinke of Raleigh; Eric English of Horse Shoe; Greg Stoughton of Niceville, Fla.; Verity Pryor Harden of Abilene, Texas; Adam Weiner from Cherry Hill, N.J.; and Brandon Engelskirchen of Concord.
Audiences should be forewarned, the production contains strong language, sexual content and adult situations, and therefore, is not recommended for children. To attend and see the possibilities of the theatrical exploited, tickets are $5 for general admission, $4 for students and senior citizens, with group discounts available. Tickets may be purchased online at www.catawba.edu/theatretix or at the box office on the nights of the performance. For more details, call the Catawba College Theatre Box Office at (704) 637-4481.
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