Family weekend brings the cast of After Orpheus many emotions. It means the end of the show, and we aren't quite sure how we feel about that. Nobody knows whether to be happy because we no longer have the large time commitments, or to be sad because it's never going to happen again.
We open the first show of the weekend to a small in number, but mighty in spirit, crowd. The audience laughs where we had never had reactions before, and we have a blast interacting with our first audience that is primarily college students. We find that American college students find our production much funnier than European Fringe-goers. We also learn that Eastern Kentucky University professors want to use our script as a required text in their upcoming drama course. The second night brings our largest attendance to date, and they love every minute.
On the last night, we gather backstage for one last adventure. We put on our costumes, have our hair and makeup done, and brace ourselves for the final showing of After Orpheus. We want it to be over, but we aren't willing to let the memories die. As the lights go up on the opening scene, we realize that these memories will never die.
Summer 2012, 13 students from the Centre College theater department took on an ambitious task: creating a play from scratch and performing it, all in no more than 21 days, and were successful. I frequently have to remind myself that this experience isn't a dream, that it actually happened, that I went to Scotland, and that I could now be considered an international performer.
We began our journey in July with nothing but a title. We had no idea what it meant, what it would become. On the night of our last show three months later, it means so much more than any of us could have expected. To us, it is more than just a play, it is a journey. Our journey. Nothing can replace it, or even come close. And now, after all this time of sharing the stories of the underworld, we finally get to tell our own; moving on to new memories and new beginnings.
The cast of After Orpheus spells out "Centre" in the Scottish Highlands