By Lester Williams Jr, Contributing Writer
“Pollyanna” is a 2021, student-run production presented by the Saint Leo University chapter of the Alpha Psi Omega national theatre honors society. As a student-run production, all of the cast and crew of “Pollyanna” are students who made all the production choices, while only receiving permission and advice from faculty and staff at Saint Leo.
The story of “Pollyanna”—which is based on the 1914 Eleanor H. Porter children’s novel that shares the same name—follows an optimistic 11-and-a-half year old girl named Pollyanna Whittier, who moves in with her strict maternal aunt. She is able to spread happiness with everyone in her new home, until a tragic incident leaves her in a depressed state, which she must overcome with the help of her new friends.
The play is directed by Anna Perri, a junior majoring in theatre, and is written, produced, and acted in by Heidi Konow, an English major who specializes in theatre. Konow is also playing the title character.
“It’s the first play that I have ever written,” said Konow. “I hope to eventually sell it so other groups can get performance rights to put it on. I’m proud and glad we’ve gotten this far.”
Konow has been involved in theatre for the past 5 years. When she was in the 12th grade, a local children’s theatre group had to decide to put on adaption of the musical “Annie” which got her attention and set her on the path to enter the world of theatre.
“I wrote Pollyanna because, quite frankly, I couldn’t find a stage adaptation of the show that I liked,” said Konow. “I wanted Anna to be my director from the beginning. A lot of us were getting tired of not doing shows this past year and needed a creative theatrical outlet, so this was great for that.”
For Konow and many members of play, this production means a lot to them, not just because it allows them to test their ability to prove they can work independently with other students on a task outside of a classroom.
Nik Vogel, a junior majoring in cybersecurity who is playing Mr. John Pendleton, decided to join the production to help out a friend. He also joined for the chance to make new friends, which he doesn’t always have chance to do as a result of his major which focuses on things like digital information, network connections, and technology.
Noah Henry is a sophomore majoring in clinical/counseling psychology who plays both Dr. Chilton and Rev. Whittier in the production. Henry hopes that the play will bring joy to the audience. Although Henry isn’t trying to purse a professional career in the theatre, he still interested in the industry and wishes to continue theatre after college in the community.
Caidance Walker—who is a junior majoring in elementary education and is playing the maid, Nancy—decided to take part in this production not only to help out a friend, but also to gain some more confidence. Even though she only got into theatre during the fall 2021 semester, she loves aspects of the industry, especially musicals, thanks to the help of friend who inspired her.
Of course, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the production has dealt with multiple restrictions. The show’s performance space—the Black Box Theatre—has a maximum seating captivity of 90 people, but the show itself will be limited to only 70 people in the audience.
Wearing masks can potentially interfere with costumes and they made it hard during rehearsals for the cast to read each other’s emotions.
“Trying to do a historical show while trying to balance mask rules is SO HARD!” Konow said. “The show is set around 1900-1910, so it feels like masks would take away from the realism of the story. We debated doing it outside, but the unpredictability of the weather in early December led us to bite the bullet to do it inside.”
However, with the University’s recent updates to their Framework for Supporting the Pride, the cast received permission to perform without masks. Audience members will still be required to wear masks.
The 2021 student-run production of “Pollyanna” is scheduled to go on stage in early December with two shows on Saturday, Dec. 4 starting at 2:00P.M. and 7:00P.M., and one show on Sunday, Dec. 5 at 7:00P.M. There will also be a chance for the audience to buy merchandise and make donations.
The performance will be held in the Black Box Theatre in Benedictine Hall, on Saint Leo’s University Campus. Tickets are free—for reservations, please contact Alpha Psi Omega at saintleoalphapsiomega@gmail.com.
