The Walla Walla University drama program has big plans for their 2024–25 season. Kicking things off with performances in December is “Ebenezer Scrooge’s Big Walla Walla University Christmas Show!” a fun, fresh take on the Christmas standard. Returning in March is wwudrama’s annual Festival of Shorts, and wrapping things up in May is William Shakespeare’s “The Merry Wives of Windsor.”
The fall quarter’s production is an adaptation of the classic “A Christmas Carol” by Gordon Greenberg and Steve Rosen intertwined with an origin story of how Village Hall came to be a theater. This music-laced story of love, friendship, and transformation still retains the traditional values of the season, but wwudrama’s unique approach breathes new life into the well-known tale.
Jerry Entze and Richard Wallace, drama program co-directors, welcome any student, faculty, staff, or alum to come audition, with no experience necessary. Auditionees will be asked to perform a provided monologue. Auditions will be held in Village Hall at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, October 2.
With winter quarter comes the return of the annual Festival of Shorts. This traditionally student-directed program will instead showcase student-written scripts consisting of original one-act plays. Remarking on this shift, Entze said, “We still want to showcase student work. It has been a while since we did original student-written scripts, so this seemed like a good year to focus on that element.”
He encourages all students, with or without previous experience, to submit their original scripts for consideration by the December 2 deadline. Up to six winning scripts will be produced as part of the festival with cash prizes allotted to the top three scripts and the audience-vote winner. See contest guidelines for more information.
Concluding the season will be wwudrama’s first ever production of William Shakespeare’s “The Merry Wives of Windsor.” Auditions will take place near the end of winter quarter with specific dates and details to come.
Performances of “Ebenezer Scrooge’s Big Walla Walla University Christmas Show!” will be on December 5, 7, 8, 11, and 14 at 7 p.m. in Village Hall.
To learn more about the WWU drama program and see season show dates, go to smcun.com/wwudrama; for further updates and news, visit @wwudrama on Instagram.
Posted Sept. 25, 2024
