‘THE FIRE’ engulfs audiences

By Libby D’Orvilliers

As a former performer turned avid theater-goer, I have been itching to get back into the audience of a theater and immerse myself in a two-hour mental break from my studies. That being said, I was overjoyed to see a notification pop up in my email inbox alerting me that Rider’s theater department would be putting on a devised theater piece entitled “THE FIRE” during the first weekend of April.

By 7 p.m. on opening night — 30 minutes prior to “curtain up” — the lobby of the Bart Luedeke Center Theater was filled with patrons preemptively armed with red and pink roses to give to their actors in celebration of their performances.

As I scanned through my program, waiting for the opening of the theater doors, I was impressed to see that over 40 students have had their hands on creating the play into its current form that was going to be presented. Having had my own hand in writing for the stage in my past, I knew that creating a piece ready for the stage is no easy feat, and I was curious to see what was about to unfold.

Directed by C. Ryanne Domingues, “THE FIRE” follows the intertwining stories of a community trying to piece themselves together following a tragic fire in an abandoned school. The play explores the different perspectives each character holds regarding the incident and co-occurring events in the community. 

Upon entering the theater, I was greeted by Kelly Clarkson’s early 2000s hit “Since U Been Gone” subtly emanating from the overhead speakers and fellow audience members nodding their heads along to the “throwback” song. Looking up at the stage, I was drawn to the red-laced basketball sneakers sitting near the foot of the stage — I could almost smell the stench of high school gym class and glancing at the lockers downstage right I was transported back into a time period I am only vaguely familiar with — the ancient days of 2004.

What I found to be perhaps one of the most impressive elements of the production was the actors and technical designers’ ability to portray and craft a story encapsulating a time period in which many of them were only around two years old or not even born yet. It became evident very quickly that the performers, script writers and designers had thoroughly researched the time-period. 

From the timely costumes consisting of lots of layered shirts and flannel, to the makeup design including some bright pink lip gloss and heavy eyeliner, the technical elements of the show really shone through. Additionally, the use of projection and video elements throughout the performance was unlike any other play I have attended. These unique touches also seemed to impress the audience as I noted a few gasps when the first grainy projection resembling an early 2000s camcorder feed illuminated the flats across the stage.

Focusing more on the performance aspect of the show, the show’s theme of ‘perspectives’ was reflected throughout the play. One scene in which this theme was notably evident was when journalist Rachel, played by junior acting major Kelly Menjivar, was trying to understand what actually happened during the titular fire and the school guidance counselor, Emily Berstein, played by junior acting major Joei Vita, seemed hesitant to disclose information surrounding the incident with Rachel — implying to the audience that Emily had a different perspective she was not willing — or able — to let the reporters in on.

Additionally, I would be remiss if I did not give a shout-out to junior acting major Nate Fleischer and sophomore acting major Henry Breit portraying characters of Alan and Richy, respectively. These two actors had an intriguing dynamic throughout the show and excellently captured the complexities of friendships that occur during one’s coming-of-age period that is plagued with self-discovery.

While very serious in topic, touching on several issues that the country is still grappling with today: standardized testing, school shootings and the dangers of the internet — just to name a few — the script was still peppered with quippy one-liners that seemed genuine to what angsty highschoolers would utter.

The many moving parts that come with creating a piece of theater involving a large number collaborators all come together seamlessly in “THE FIRE” as Rider University continues to cement itself as an institution that values the arts and encourages student creativity. The entire team, both behind-the-scenes and on the stage, should be extremely proud of the work that they demonstrated this past weekend and know that they thoroughly entertained this theater patron.

Matt Cirola is circulation manager for The Rider News and served as assistant scenic designer for “THE FIRE.” Cirola had no part in the writing or editing of this piece. 

Libby D’Orvilliers is a junior psychology major