Theatre Department to Perform Will Eno’s Seriocomic Play ‘Middletown’

The College of the Holy Cross theatre department will present the seriocomic play “Middletown,” written by Will Eno and directed by Scott Malia, assistant professor of theatre. The performances will be held in Fenwick Theatre, located on the second floor of O’Kane Hall, on November 3-5 and 10-12 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $7 for members of the Holy Cross community and $10 for the general public and can be reserved by calling the box office at 508-793-2496.

“Middletown” is an extraordinary tale about contemporary American life that may seem familiar — like it could take place in your town, in your neighborhood, or even on your own front porch. Eno’s play and its characters, such as the neglected pregnant woman, the old librarian, the unrepentant bum and the hapless handyman, give us a snapshot of where we are right now by inviting us to spend time with a group of people who are both mundane and extraordinary — and all lost somewhere in the middle of their lives.

“This is a play about big questions with no easy answers,” says Malia. “All of the people in this play are trying to find their paths in life, so it really is a perfect play for college students — who are asking themselves some of the same questions. This is a play about regular, everyday people who find out that ‘the everyday’ is also extraordinary.”

Malia describes the play’s language as “funny, sometimes poetic, and always smart,” which is complimented by its setting.

“The designers and production team have really created an amazing world for the actors to inhabit,” says Malia. “This is a play that takes place in both a picturesque small town and outer space. It gives the actors so much to work with.”

From the perspective of Alec Davis ’17, who plays the role of “The Cop,” the script also adds to the play: “My character particularly has a few specific moments in which I speak directly to the audience. I think that these moments create a different sense of the play, in that the audience almost has these very personal discussions with some of the characters outside of the core scenes of the play. This gives a much greater depth to both the language of the script and also to the characters themselves.”

The play’s main cast includes: Emma O'Leary ’18, Rosemary Weiss ’18, Vincent Crotta ’19, Jacob Applegate ’20, Frank Thompson ’20, Meredith Coolidge ’19, Alec Davis ’17, Noah Mailloux ’20, Anthony Leung ’19, Alexis Rappaport ’19, Gianna DiMaiolo ’19, Derek Kunz ’17, and Emily Arancio ’20.