St. Charles East play spotlights ethics
“An Enemy of the People” is a classic play with a timely message, and it's being performed by St. Charles East this weekend.
A drama originally written by Henrik Ibsen and later adapted by Arthur Miller, “Enemy” tells the story of a small-town doctor who discovers pollutants in the community's water spa and is met with resistance while trying to spread the word about the contamination.
Performances will be at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 18, and Saturday, Feb. 19, and 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 20, at the Norris Cultural Arts Center, 1040 Dunham Road, St. Charles. Tickets are $5-$7 and are available at the door.
According to play director and St. Charles East faculty member Teresa Bundy, comedy is usually the first genre high school students pick for a performance. However, Bundy says this year her students were looking for a show that would provide them with a greater challenge.
“Each type of play offers its unique challenges. High school students naturally will gravitate toward comedy because they like the over exaggeration of comedy,” Bundy said. “(With) drama, I think they like the challenge of knowing that they are communicating a theme that's relevant.”
Dramas also have more complex characters.
“A character who might be the villain normally might be shown to have some redeeming qualities. Even the hero might have heroic qualities but they always have certain flaws that hold them back,” Bundy said. “I think (students) like the opportunity to dig deeper ... I think (students) like trying to get to the emotions in the play, although it's difficult.”
Bundy also liked that even though “An Enemy of the People” takes place in the 1880s, it contains a message and themes relevant to current events. The students likened the spread of contaminants in the town's water supply to the BP oil spill that wreaked havoc in the Gulf of Mexico this past summer.
“(The students and I have) talked about what are the modern day parallels (between the play and life today),” she said.
“We've talked about the BP oil spill. We've also talked about how government runs, what is the influence of lobbyists, how factual is information communicated to the masses. (The students) thought (the Wiki Leaks scandal) really paralleled what the play's message is about. They really liked the idea of someone who was willing to stand up for what they believe in even if they were ostracized for it.”
Ultimately, Bundy believes “An Enemy of the People” is about a quest to stand up for the truth — even if it's unpopular or ill received.
“The idea (of the play is): do we quickly accept what's being told to us? Should we be questioning what people are telling us? If you know something is wrong should you stand up and say something even though it will hurt you in the long run?” she said.
“So (you) just (need to) question, ‘what would I do with the truth when I know it to be true?' Will I stand up or will I shirk my responsibility and everyone's life?”