Near-silent “Small Mouth Sounds” premieres Friday
The play, featuring only seven performers, is set to premiere on Friday, Feb. 24, in the Colman Theatre after Wednesday and Thursday shows were canceled due to a winter storm. Set at a silent retreat, the play aims to get audiences to contemplate their own thoughts on silence and sound. Due to the small script, the show has challenged actors on their traditional methods of developing a relationship with their characters.
When six strangers meet on a silent retreat, what could possibly go wrong?
This weekend, the CSB+SJU theater department will be presenting Bess Wolh’s “Small Mouth Sounds,” an awkward yet comedic play urging those in attendance to ponder the true value of silence. Director Sean Dooley chose the play for the opportunity it presents student actors to step out of their comfort zones and deliver something entirely unique.
“I was interested in it because I had never read anything like it before,” Dooley said. “I also thought it would be a great experience for our student actors to challenge themselves with something that is not what they’re used to. They do a wonderful job creating this world non-verbally.”
As the director, Dooley worked to ensure actors were getting their characters’ messages across to the audience, something that looked different than plays in which characters have the ability to communicate that with lines.
“It’s about the honesty or sincerity of the action that is being portrayed. It needs to look like they’re really doing whatever the thing is that they are supposed to be portraying. As a director, I sit out there and just gauge if that’s being communicated or not. It has been a fun process,” Dooley said.
As the setting is a silent retreat, much of the action of the play is communicated through action, rather than words. CSB senior Celeste Dickson found that the preparation for “Small Mouth Sounds” looked very different than the plays she has performed in the past.
“There are so few lines that much of our focus is on building character. We asked ourselves a lot of questions as actors to get to know our characters better. What qualities make them unique? Who are they close with? Knowing those answers helps us to get into the correct mindset,” Dickson said.
The play follows the lives of six individuals as they embark on a soul-searching journey in the quiet of the woods. Though strangers, the individuals connect with one another over the course of their time at the retreat, creating a memorable experience for actors and audience members alike. Both Dooley and Dickson recommend audience members approach the play with an open and curious mind.
“The biggest thing I hope is that audiences come in with a willingness to be responsive to the show and not and not feel like they have to observe the same kind of silence,” Dooley said.
Echoing Dooley, Dickson encourages theater-goers to connect with the characters at a deeper level.
“Prepare for some awkward humor. I find that our play is very relatable because we’ve all experienced a moment when we’ve been forced to communicate silently or have been in a situation with strangers,” Dickson said. “It is extremely relatable in some way, shape or form.”
Performances of “Small Mouth Sounds” will take place in CSB’s Coleman Theater Feb. 24-26. Tickets and more information can be found on the Fine Arts Programming website.
