“Fuddy Meers,” State University Theater’s first production of the year, has been selected by respondents to perform at the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival in Des Moines.
The comedic and heartbreaking play follows a woman with amnesia who is kidnapped by a man who claims her husband wants to kill her. Out of 30 productions that were reviewed, four have been selected to perform at the regional festival.
The festival began Jan. 19 and runs through Jan. 25. The Fuddy Meers performance was Jan. 21 at 7 p.m. at the Hoyt Sherman Place.
This is the first production State University Theatre & Dance has brought to the festival.
The cast and crew got from 8 a.m. to 11:55 p.m. to build the set in the space, rehearse, perform the show for over 1,000 people, and then take the set down. Then on Wednesday, the cast and crew attended a response session to their performance and a response to their load in and load out of the set.
Before heading to Des Moines, Gerrit VonEye, a cast member, said the biggest challenge would be building the set all day and then having the energy to rehearse and perform. “Coffee and prayers will be needed,” he said.
Before the festival there was a fundraising show on Jan. 14 at the Oscar Larson theater. This was done to help with the costs of taking the show to Des Moines. Tickets were sold online for $10.
VonEye said it is surreal to be stepping into his role of Richard again.
“The cast formed such a strong bond the first time, and as we got back together, everyone truly sunk back into their roles so easily with just three days of rehearsing,” he said. “It’s been extremely fun to see how everyone is making the show new and fresh.”
Carl Steinlicht, a cast member, said before the Des Moines show that he hoped the audience walks away from the play thinking about the people they care about. Steinlicht will graduate in May and has been thankful for the opportunities he has had at SDSU.
“‘Fuddy Meers’ is my final performance of my college career, and the cast is the best group of people I could ever ask for,” he said.
When asked what it feels like to work on the show again, Steinlicht said, “Being able to pick up the show again feels like home really. It was just amazing.”
Alex Strawn, a cast member, was thrilled to hear that “Fuddy Meers” was selected to perform at the festival.
When asked what he is looking forward to most at the festival, Strawn said, “I am honestly looking forward to our production of “Fuddy Meers” the most because this show holds a special place in the cast and crew’s hearts and we want to share it with as many people as possible.”
He said the show tackles some really heavy topics and lets the audience experience heavy emotions while carrying on as a comedy.
“The rehearsals and cast meant everything to me and the show itself meant even more,” Strawn said. “And it’s so fulfilling to bring messages of loss and struggle to an audience’s eye.”
Everyone apart of the production was excited to share “Fuddy Meers” with the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival.
Before leaving for Des Moines, Strawn said, “We’re so grateful we could perform this again and we’re going to make the most out of everything we can.”