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Knight’s World Premiere

by Christopher Stahl

On Dec. 1, senior theater major Lisa Knight debuted her first play based on the book “The Violin and the Butterfly” by Kristy Cambron. Not only was it her debut as a director, but it was the world premiere of the play. The turnout for Friday night was about 50 people, and the play was well received. Knight spoke to the audience before the play’s start, explaining how she wrote and directed it all herself for her senior seminar.

The story was set during World War II and was about Adele Von Bron’s experience being imprisoned in a concentration camp because she assisted her lover, Vladimir Nicolai, in hiding Jews. After being sent to the camp, she was recruited to an orchestra because of her skill in playing the violin. The story went on about her life in the concentration camp and concluded with the major characters explaining what happened to them after the war.

The play included 10 actors. Standouts from the performance included senior Jessica Cramer’s emotional lead role as Adele Von Bron and junior Eric Gudgel’s stunning performance as Vladimir Nicolai. At points, I flinched at junior Sebastian Braun’s performance as a Nazi guard and as Adele Von Bron’s father; I barely recognized him on stage such was his intimidating demeanor.

The actors outdid themselves during the play, and the story was easy to follow. The lighting and technical aspects were also well done, including making the lights a dark red whenever Braun came out as the Nazi soldier demanding the workers to change the set. Not only should the actors be given praise, but the crew, including as stage manager Kennideigh McKee and the technical director Andrea Swift-Hanlon, who helped Knight produce her senior seminar.

This play was a success and something that I would happily watch again.

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