A new musical by Arkansas Tech University faculty members Dr. David J. Eshelman and Dr. Timothy Smith will debut at ATU’s Techionery Theatre with four performances during the month of October.
Performances of “A Taste of Buffalo” are scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 24, Friday, Oct. 25, and Saturday, Oct. 26, at 7 p.m. as well as Sunday, Oct. 27, at 2 p.m.
Tickets ($12 general admission/$8 students or with ATU identification card) will be available at the door, 1502 N. El Paso Ave. in Russellville.
“A Taste of Buffalo” focuses on the life cycles of U.S. cities. By personifying cities as characters, the musical teaches civics lessons through song and dance.
“This play is unusual because it is about cities, about that illusive concept called prosperity, and about the forces that cause cities to rise and decline,” said Eshelman, writer and director of the musical. “Specifically, the play looks at Seattle, Wash., and Buffalo, N.Y., but — really — it is about all cities as they make choices about development. Here in Russellville, we are due to make decisions in the near future as our population expands. ‘A Taste of Buffalo’ is about the long-term effects of such choices.”
Eshelman is professor of communication and director of the theatre program at ATU. Smith, ATU professor of music, developed the musical score for “A Taste of Buffalo.”
“I developed piano accompaniments and dance music for this show when we did (an earlier staged) reading in 2010,” said Smith. “This time around, I am working on filling out the orchestrations as well as modifying and expanding some of the songs. In rehearsals, I am serving as rehearsal pianist. It is great fun to see another group of talented women taking on these unique characters.”
“A Taste of Buffalo” cast members are Gracie Folks of Harrison, Chelsea Mattas of Ozark, Helen Reece of Clarksville, Patricia Reece of Clarksville, Ashlin Trahan of Clarksville and Holly Ruth Gale, associate professor of music at ATU.
Behind the scenes student personnel include Chloe Charton of Ola and Faith Spencer of Clarksville, assistant directors; Cannon Cobb of Pottsville, stage manager and lighting designer; Andrew Egan of Gamaliel and Caleb Foshe of Fayetteville, assistant stage managers; Maddie Geels of Clarksville, costume designer; Jack Button of Springdale, props co-designer and lighting designer; Jacob Smith of Little Rock, props co-designer; Trey Tomkins of Sherwood, poster designer; and JaMarcus Walker of Lufkin, Texas, head of publicity.
Other student participants include Joey Scheyder of Farmington and Billy Voyles of Russellville, lighting; Franshel Horney of Russellville and Emily Porterfield of Bismarck, costumes; and Summer Dantzler of Conway and Abraham Zarate of Russellville, publicity.
ATU faculty participants include Ken Futterer, associate professor of music, musical director; Jesse Ring, assistant professor of art, set designer; Cynthia Eisemann, visiting lecturer of communication, choreographer; and Frances Roberson, assistant professor of theatre, technical director. Patrick Hagge, associate professor of geography, will give a post-play response after the Oct. 24 show.
“A Taste of Buffalo” has been entered into the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival.
The ATU theatre program is part of the ATU Department of Communication and Journalism. For more information about the program or about “A Taste of Buffalo,” call (479) 964-0890 or visit www.atu.edu/cj/theatre.php.
Editor’s note: Summer Dantzler, an ATU theatre and public relations student from Conway, provided the information for this news release.
