A man walks into a bar……….
It’s an opening line of a joke and an everyday occurrence. Public places and their place in our lives is part of the fabric of our culture. It is also the basis for the senior honors project of Theatre Honors major Ben Kolis. His vision and his challenge was to take a public place, Patrick’s on Third in St.Peter, and create a physical theatre performance that would be staged while the bar was open, involving the public, the wait staff, the sounds and energy of the venue. Everyday occurrences. Glass, conceived and directed by Gustavus senior Ben Kolis, is the product of the collaborative process between Kolis and the 7 other members of the cast. Performances are scheduled at 8:30 p.m. April 20, 21 & 22 at Patrick’s on Third. Admission is free. The drinks are not.
Glass is a series of everyday occurrences, events which each one of us will recognize, and with which we will associate — planned get-togethers, chance meetings, casual comments, greetings shouted across the room or serious conversations over a pint of beer and an appetizer or a burger. This cross-over between theatre and dance, physical theatre combines an ever-changing set with actors in ever-changing roles. There is a script but not one story line or plot. Some of the vignettes are very short. Others are longer. Like a dance concert, the actors move around the set, taking on different and changing roles while adapting to an environment that is constantly in flux. The nature of the location and the every-changing set is simply another challenge for the cast of Glass.
Director Ben Kolis credits his involvement in the Gustavus Department of Theatre & Dance 2009 performance of Falling Awake as one of the factors which influenced his decision to create and stage Glass as his senior honors project. As an actor, he came to appreciate the combination of acting and heightened movement, of experimenting with facial and body expression, and he enjoyed the combination of the face, body and voice in creating effect.
And he loved the unexpected. Glass is entertaining and interesting. It is provocative and surprising. It is humorous and insightful. It can be chaotic and it will be unexpected.
Given the venue is a bar, Glass may best be described as a series of snapshots of life — of your life — with a twist.
Glass opens Friday, April 20 and runs through April 22 with performances each evening in Patrick’s on Third in St. Peter.
Admission is free but remember to tip your waiter. He may be a member of the cast.
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