Theater Productions “The 39 Steps” and “Oz” Produced for Student Practicum

Pictured: Caleb Jalas, Chloe Brown, Hannah Watt, Rose Grothaus, Faith Jonas, Josh Marlatt, Nathan Leonard, Brody Schofield, Josie O’Laughlin, Adam Prince, Drew Boggs and Linnea Buchholz

By Kaytlyn Kindschy

Photo Courtesy of Kaytlyn Kindschy

Senior Theater major Hannah Watt co-directed and co-produced two shows, “The 39 Steps: A Live Radio Play” by Joe Landry and “OZ” by Don Zolidis, alongside junior Rose Grothaus to complete her capstone project. 

Because of COVID-19, Watt and Grothaus had to find different ways to allow their shows to go on.

“We wondered how we could put on a show that was worth seeing while keeping the COVID guidelines in mind,” Watt said. “With ‘The 39 Steps’ being a radio play, our actors didn’t have to move so that was easy to figure out.” 

Both shows were recorded and tickets were available  to listen to the radio show, but also to watch the video recording of “OZ”. Although the plays were not performed for a live audience, having them available for online access allowed the shows to reach a larger audience than just the Concordia community. 

“I don’t know how many people actually listened to it; we’ll see those stats in a couple of weeks, but I could reach people that weren’t even at Concordia,” Watt said. “I had to keep in mind how these shows were representing Concordia because they were available anywhere in the world essentially.”

For those that missed the opportunity to listen and are not already familiar with the two shows, “The 39 Steps” was written by Joe Landry and is based on the Alfred Hitchcock story of a murder mystery. “OZ” was written by Don Zolidis and resembles “The Wizard of Oz” with a skewed story that focuses on a grieving young woman’s journey alongside the familiar characters from the original story.

Watt also shared how grateful she was to put on these productions for the Concordia community.

“I am so thankful for everyone who helped me with this project,” she said.

Although the two shows Watt and Grothaus put together are no longer available, the Theater department continues to prepare shows and improv opportunities that are COVID safe and available for the student body to participate in. 

“Our improv show is on Nov. 7 in Weller and you’ll have to sign up for a spot just like you do for Praise or Chapel,” Watt said. “There are no tickets involved but anyone can sign up because we want people to become involved in theater.”