The media is not the only outlet giving attention to political sex scandals.
LSU Theatre will take a look at the subject with a production of Theresa Rebeck’s “View of the Dome,” the last studio production of the season.
“View of the Dome,” coincidentally written before Monica Lewinsky ever entered the public mindframe, follows the ambitious young lawyer, Emma, as she gets caught up in a scandal on Capitol Hill.
The undergraduate cast members take on two or three roles each in the comedy Director Jane Brody describes as fast-paced.
“The play challenges them creatively and imaginatively,” Brody said. “The different roles they take on vary in age and in dialect.”
Brody said the students involved learn to develop their comedy and character techniques through juggling multiple roles.
“The show is definitely challenging because [actors] have to figure ways to make each character different,” said Vincent Licata, a biological sciences professor who plays two senators and a campaign manager in the play.
Licata said a difficulty in rehearsals was to develop each character separately and not focus too much character development on one specific part.
As a studio production, the play works as a workshop for undergraduates, giving students creative involvement and a learning environment to develop their craft.
While professional actors headline Swine Palace productions, undergraduates are the stars of studio and LSU Theatre productions, Brody said.
“Studio productions make things more intimate between actors and the director as well as with the audience,” said Lauren Fain, a theatre senior who plays Anna Beth Gilky and other characters.
Fain said usually, with studio performances, the audience size is smaller. Students involved in the shows are directed by professors who can challenge them.
Theatre junior Belle Caplis only plays one part, the main protagonist of the play, Emma.
Caplis said “View of the Dome” is interesting and satirical because the audience gets to see events through Emma’s point of view before seeing the full picture.
“The play talks about how people can do wrong when they are trying to do good,” Caplis said.
Brody said when she first read the play, she was amazed at how each page consisted of shocking and funny moments.
“I’m working with a superb cast, and the subject matter is very entertaining,” Brody said. “[‘View of the Dome’] is hip and funny. It’s a good date show.”
Performances run Nov. 19 through Nov. 24 at 7:30 p.m. in the Music and Dramatic Arts Building’s Claude L. Shaver Theatre.