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A large ensemble cast from the McKendree University Theater Department will present “A Delightful Quarantine” at four performances, Nov. 6-9 at the Hettenhausen Center for the Arts on campus.
In this dramatic comedy by Mark Dunn, the residents of Susqua Creek Acres face an interesting few days ahead. Aliens have landed to take soil samples, and the residents (plus a few unlucky visitors) have been quarantined in their homes for three days for their own protection. The play follows seven households’ attempts to cope with their situation and each other.
Each group faces its own challenge. A young woman is stuck with the mother who gave her up for adoption 32 years earlier and a twin sister she never knew about. Another woman is forced into quarantine with a blind date who is allergic to her 14 cats (who may or may not be real). Two unhappily married husbands find themselves housebound with each other’s wives. Two little girls find a treasure trove of old clothes and have the greatest dress up party ever. A pair of little old ladies try to keep the young man who was robbing their house under control, while elsewhere a brother struggles to honor his sick sister’s request.
“At its heart, this play is about love and relationships,” said Director Michelle Radke Magnussen, associate professor of theater. “Without the quarantine, these people would probably have brief, unimportant connections and would continue with their normal lives. Because they are locked up together for three days, they are forced to deal with each other for a longer period of time than they had planned. In that time, they all forge a deeper relationship than seemed possible at the beginning. All of the characters’ lives are changed significantly, not because of what happened outside their houses but because of what happened inside them.”
The cast and crew includes five McKendree University seniors: Spencer Marcum of Centralia, Josh Fleming of Cave-in-Rock, Derek Anzuini of Chicago, Dawn Schmid of Columbia, and Nathan Hunt of Harrisburg.
“A Delightful Quarantine” will be performed on Nov. 6, 7 and 8 at 7:30 p.m. and on Nov. 9 at 2:30 p.m. Admission is free. The Hett opens for general admission seating 30 minutes beforehand. For more information, call 618-537-6586 or email mlmagnussen@mckendree.edu.
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