Written by Aislinn Cain (Class of 2021)

Birmingham-Southern College Theatre is back again, bringing theatre in the midst of a pandemic. Throughout the month of January, students have put together a socially distanced production to share with the BSC community.

This time, instead of a completely original piece, the play is a compilation of Shakespearean comedies. Co-director Rose Simpson (senior) and dramaturg Mara Smith (sophomore) teamed up with faculty co-director Dr. Alan Litsey to edit and stitch together various scenes from William Shakespeare’s comedic plays. The result is “A Bone to Pick with Fate: Shakespeare’s Fortune, Mischance, and Mischief.” Simpson and Smith breathe new life into the script to make Shakespeare more approachable for a modern audience.

Juniors James McKay and Louisa Davis.

“This show has never actually been done before,” Simpson says. “Alan, Mara, and I created this script and it’s unique and funny. Although these scenes have been done before, we’re doing them differently than they’ve ever been done before. It’s a night of comedy, joy, and fun.”

Leading the charge of the production alongside Smith and Simpson are technical director Abby Akard (senior), lighting designer Caroline Nowak (junior), costume designer Annie Norris (senior), and stage manager Claire Lowe (sophomore). These incredible leaders direct the other students on the day-to-day activities and make important creative decisions that are required to produce a full-scale production. These decisions require a tremendous amount of work for a regular show, let alone a production that accounts for safety from a highly contagious virus.

These women are making strides in the BSC theatre department. Akard commented that this was the first time that a student has been the primary technical director. “I didn’t know I was the technical director by myself until the day before we started, which is fun and nerve-wracking all at the same time.”

Sophomore Mhairi Kerr, senior Gale Riggs, and first-year Hannah Jackson.

With the creative team primarily composed of women, the juxtaposition between the BSC student team to the current gender disparity in the professional world is jarring. In her 2019 article in the Chicago Tribune, award-winning playwright and professor Rebecca Gilman ’87 noted that female directors and designers only make up 37% of off-Broadway professionals. Even on BSC’s campus where women are the majority in the performative arts, the faculty members leading these majors are men.

Despite the disparity, it is important to celebrate the elevation of women’s voices through the creative choices in “A Bone to Pick with Fate” – especially considering that women were barred from such choices when these scenes originated.

Women are running the show now.

On behalf of the Birmingham-Southern Theatre Department, cast, and crew of “A Bone to Pick with Fate,” you are encouraged to experience a night of laughter and joy.

February 11, 12, & 13 at 7:30 p.m. | February 14 at 2:30 p.m. | College Theatre | Mainstage
Admission is Free; No reservations required.

Seating is limited to 30 audience members at each performance. Masks will be required of all audience members, and social distance guidelines will be followed entering and exiting the building, and with the available seating. Audience members must show their GuideSafe passport. Theatre faculty, staff, and students will be available to guide audience members through the process. The production will also be streamed online here: BSC Theatre Events YouTube Channel.

You can see more interviews and behind-the-scenes photos on Instagram @bsctheatre.