CONWAY — As part of their stated mission, The Lantern Theatre and Conway Community Arts Association endeavor to support and produce works by new playwrights. Evidence of that mission is the upcoming production of Craigslisted, an original play by Sharai Bohannon of Chicago.
Bohannon is the literary manager at Artemisia, a Chicago theater. She is a 2016 graduate of Texas Tech University with a Master of Fine Arts degree in playwriting and a 2013 graduate of the University of Central Missouri with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in technical theater/theater design and technology.
Trent Reese of Conway directs the local production of Craigslisted, which will be presented at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 15, 16, 21, 22 and 23 and at 2:30 p.m. Sept. 17 and 24.
Reese is a 2007 graduate of Conway High School and a 2012 graduate of the University of Central Missouri. He is president of the CCAA Board of Directors and box office manager at The Lantern.
“I met Sharai when we were undergraduates together at the University of Central Missouri,” Reese said. “After she graduated, she went on to Texas Tech University to pursue her master’s degree in playwriting.
“This play [Craigslisted] was her thesis project,” Reese said. “It was produced at Texas Tech but this is the first time it has been produced outside of collegiate theater.
“We are proud to be supporting and producing work by new playwrights because today’s new plays could be tomorrow’s classics,” Reese said. “I have a circle of friends who write plays and I put out the word we were looking to produce new works here. Sharai responded by sending us a script. We read it and fell in love with it.
“Not only is Craigslisted an original play by a new playwright, it is pushing us into the technical world,” Reese said, laughing. “It is very social media minded.
“We are using a lot of projections on the set,” he said. “The audience will see Craigslist ads and Facebook posts on the walls.
“Shua Miller is our projectionist,” Reese said. “Plus we have a new lighting designer — Phillip Donaghey, who is a theater student at the University of Central Arkansas.”
Reese said Craigslisted is the story of Maggie, who is having trouble paying her bills and
going to college at the same time. The play is set in Kansas City, Missouri, in modern-day time.
“To pay for college, Maggie turns to an unconventional solution that ultimately shatters her world in some hilarious and powerful ways,” Reese said. “She turns to Craigslist, enlists a number of clients and does silly things to make money.
“It is definitely a comedy, but the line between reality and perception is blurred,” Reese said. “It is rated PG-13 for adult situations and language.”
Reese said the play features several new faces, “lots of young new faces,” he said, smiling.
Cast members include:
• Brynn Woods, who plays the lead character, Maggie. Woods is from Hooks, Texas, and is making her debut with The Lantern Theatre. She is a senior at UCA, double-majoring in theater and public relations.
“I did theater in high school and have done some things with UCA Theater,” she said. “I was in The Winter’s Tale at UCA with Shua. He and other friends told me about this play and encouraged me to audition. I’m glad it worked out.
“This is a very fun play for me,” she said. “I can definitely relate to going to college and still having to pay your bills.
“I played some super sarcastic characters in high school,” she said. “I think my character in this play is a bit nicer. She gets herself into some pretty interesting situations; she is very strong willed and reliant. I look for those traits in a role model.
“I am glad I found this opportunity [to act at The Lantern],” she said. “It just fell in my lap.”
• Charlotte Grant, who plays Haley, one of Maggie’s best friends. Grant is a 2014 graduate of Conway High School and a junior at UCA majoring in sociology.
“My character, Haley, is the more supportive friend of Maggie,” she said, smiling. “She has her best interest at heart.”
Grant grew up with the local community theater group as both of her parents, Patrick and Carla Grant, were involved in the early days of CCAA productions. Charlotte Grant last appeared in The Lantern’s production of Mrs. Mannerly in 2013.
“I also stage-managed Wrong Turn at Lungfish, which was the last show my mother directed at The Lantern last season,” she said, adding her mother hopes to direct another show next season.
“Craigslisted is a great play,” Grant said. “It’s an original play and that gives us a lot of freedom for interpretation.”
• Elizabeth Williams, who plays Robin, the second of Maggie’s best friends.
Williams is a veteran actor with the community theater troupe; she is also secretary of the CCAA Board of Directors. A 2013 graduate of Hendrix College with a degree in theater arts, Williams currently works at the Hillary Rodham Clinton Children’s Library and Learning Center in Little Rock.
“I love this play,” Williams said. “I have met Sharai before. She is such a fun person … that comes through in her work.
“Craigslisted is a really interesting take on the situation… being in college and not being able to afford to live,” she said. “All the money you have goes toward classes.
“I could see how that could happen,” she said. “I live in Conway and went to school here, so I had my parents to fall back on, if needed. College tuition is so expensive now.”
Williams said Maggie “kinda gets in over her head and my character, Robin, tries to change her mind a little about making contact with people on Craigslist.
“Robin is very opinionated,” Williams said of her character.
“She likes to get in people’s business. She comes across as pushy but I think she means well.”
• Sydney Stoner, who plays Bobbi, one of Maggie’s clients. Stoner is a 2011 graduate of Conway High School and a recent graduate of UCA, where she majored in theater. She participated in the Disney College Program in Orlando, Florida, where she worked first as a lifeguard and then as a character attendant at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
She appeared in The Lantern’s production of Stop Kiss earlier this year in conjunction with Conway Pride.
“My character in Craigslisted has a foot fetish,” Stoner said. “Bobbi has to paint Maggie’s toes.
“Personally, I, Sydney, hate feet so this is a challenging part for me,” Stoner said, laughing.
• Max Churchwell, who plays Ned, another one of Maggie’s clients.
Churchwell is a graduate of Greenbrier High School, where he was involved in theatrical productions. He is a sophomore theater major at UCA. This is his first time to perform at The Lantern Theatre.
“I had seen ads about auditions and wanted to try out for a play here but the timing was never just right,” he said. “This time, I bought a new shirt and came over here right after work and auditioned. They are so inclusive here … to let me be a part of this play.
“My character, Ned, met Maggie on Craigslist,” Churchwell
said. “He is not quite honest about how many people he wants to come over to Maggie’s apartment nor exactly what he wants them to do.”
• Kane Anderson, who plays Gary, also one of Maggie’s clients.
Anderson is beginning his second year as the Murphy Visiting Fellow in Language and Literature and Theatre Arts at Hendrix College. He is teaching voice for the theater and introduction to theater this year, which, he said, is his final year of a two-year contract.
“I will be moving on after this year,” he said.
Anderson said working with new playwrights is one of his passions.
“I like working with new text and developing it,” he said. “I like to do a little ad-libbing as well. I like to suggest ways to do a line or a scene, but we always contact the playwright first to see if it’s OK.”
Anderson describes Gary, his character in Craigslisted, as a “creeper.”
“He is a little creepy … he has a dark side,” said Anderson, who has a Bachelor of Arts degree in theater arts from the University of Pennsylvania, a Master of Fine Arts degree in theater performance from Arizona State University and a doctorate in theater studies from the University of California at Santa Barbara. He appeared in The Lantern’s production of Hate Mail in
February and directed its production of Stop Kiss in May.
Two other veteran actors at The Lantern also have roles as Maggie’s clients in Craigslisted. Henry Smiley, a professor of English and chairman of the literature and language arts department at Central Baptist College, plays Dave and Saxon Whitehead, who is pursuing a post-baccalaureate degree in theater at UCA, plays Jay.
Members of the crew for Craigslisted include Morgan Stephens, a theater major at UCA, as the stage manager; Darby Burdine of Conway, as the costumer; and Kari Livingston of Greenbrier, who is in charge of props.
Tickets to Craigslisted are $15 and may be purchased online at thelanterntheatre.com. The Lantern Theatre is at 1021 Van Ronkle St. in Conway.