Culture
OU Theatre Department Presents The Skin of Our Teeth April 7, 11-14
By: Natalie Colarossi
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Ohio University’s Theatre Division will be presenting its fourth production of the 2017-18 school year with The Skin of Our Teeth. The show will take place in the Forum Theatre in the RTVC building on campus April 7 and 11-14. General admission is $10, OU student admission is free with a valid ID, and non-OU students and senior admission is $7.
The Skin of Our Teeth was written as a surrealist comedy in 1942 by American playwright Thornton Wilder. Through a series of three wildly different comedic acts, the play explores themes of family life and society at large.
The central focus of the play revolves around an Eternal family who encounter a variety of challenges such as an Ice Age, flood, and war. Through each act the family is able to escape extreme situations just “by the skin of their teeth,” providing the play with both comedic and thoughtful material.
“I think people will like it because it’s hilarious. It’s amazing to me that this play was written in 1942 which predates television sitcoms, because it really has that feel… if you are in a family you will identify with some of the things that happen in this play, because it uses the family as a symbol of society and humanity,” says third year MFA Director Ben Stockman.
The Skin of Our Teeth is Stockman’s thesis project and final assignment in culmination of his degree with the Professional Director Training Program at Ohio University.
In addition to the comedic elements of the play, Stockman explains that there are many elements of The Skin of Our Teeth that are applicable to today’s social and political climate.
“Even after I chose it, it started to become a lot more relevant in terms of what’s going on in America today. Part of The Skin of Our Teeth is about the human race and how it recovers from crises, and how it deals with impending crises…without even meaning to I’ve found that there are really interesting parallels between this play and things that have been going on in current events.”
The play uses a variety of theatrical techniques, such as a community theatre inspired set design, and the use of meta-theatrical performing, where the actors will break character and talk directly to the audience.
“Things happen during the course of the production that you barely see in theatre, but everything that happens in the script happens every night,” said Stockman.
The show is comprised of 19 actors, three of which are graduate students, and the rest undergraduate.
Annie Ganousis, third year MFA graduate acting student describes her final Ohio University play performance in The Skin of Our Teeth as a fun and wild experience.
“It’s just so funny because it’s so aware of itself. I don’t think people laugh at themselves enough. We need to have a better sense of humor because we’re all so uptight about stuff. That’s why I love this play, we’re all just laughing… people should come see it and not be afraid to laugh.”