Review: WITCH At University Of Arkansas Fayetteville

If the theatrical department is equivalent to the productions that I saw over the weekend at The University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, they have proven to be a top tier educational program worthy of all the accolades they receive. This was my first time reviewing shows at U of A, and I plan on returning. On Saturday, March 2, Broadway World was in attendance to see WITCH by Jen Silverman in the Global Campus Theatre, which is their Blackbox space that hold more intimate works of art. We were not ready for the level of skill these students emitted.  

Set in the Village of Edmonton and based on the 1621 story The Witch of Edmonton, Scratch (Alex Ahuja) is a junior salesman-if you will-for Satan, trying to buy souls in exchange for their deepest desires. It was pretty easy for Scratch to win over Frank Thorney (Sean Ryan) by agreeing to make him part of the royal family, Cuddy Banks (Nicholas White) gave over his soul for the death of Frank, and Winnifred (Bellah Crawford) gave hers away just so she could keep the life she already had going on, which was to live in the castle and wait on Sir Arthur Banks (Asaru Buffalo). The only real challenge was the town “Witch” Elizabeth Sawyer (Marjorie Gast). Elizabeth kept refusing, which made Scratch want to spend more time with her. As they got to know each other, Scratch fell in love. Then Winnifred came in and made her deal, which made Elizabeth lose all hope and ultimately ask for mankind to be wiped away. Grim....yes, but oh so intriguing! 

   This cast was amazing! Honestly! The storytelling of these students was beyond impressive. My attention was captured throughout the show's duration. There was a lot of pairing up in this play. Asaru Buffalo and Sean Ryan created a fun bolstering duo. Ryan reminded me a lot of a Gaston type character, but without being too over the top. In the scenes with Crawford, I could feel the tension she was effusing when it came to Ryan’s character. For her character’s sake, I was happy the relationship didn’t work out. Nicholas White as Cuddy was endearing, even if he did wish death on his crush.....bless his heart. Even though White’s character ultimately chose violence, his sensitivity made your heart want him to be able to dance with his troupe without all the grief.  

Of course, the main pairing of the story was with Alex Ahuja’s Scratch and Marjorie Gast’s Elizabeth. That was an interesting one. As the show progressed, I was guessing where this was probably going to end, but it was still fascinating to watch play out. Ahuja was an interesting underworld minion. He reminded me a little of Neal Patrick Harris who turned to the dark side. Gast was amazing to watch. She gave us all of the emotions....well, maybe not joy, but you understand what I’m saying. Gast was so intense. Even when she wasn’t talking, you could see it on her face that she was committed to the role. I was impressed. Truly, I was impressed with everyone. 

Was THE PROM as good as this one? You’ll have to read that article next. 

The set was simple and functional. The cast took turns removing and rearranging the pieces for each scene, and even when the actors were moving the set, they stayed in character. That was pretty cool.  

Broadway World realizes that it takes a small army to put on shows, even when they have a small ensemble. The Production/Creative crew consisted of Director Stevn Marzolf, Scenic Designer Jamie Spillars, Lighting Designer Olivia Mack, Costume Designer Taylor Bell, Sound Designer Julz Jenney, Choreographer Heidee Lyn Aisdorf, Fight and Intimacy Choreographer David Reed, Vocal Coach Ben Corbett, Dramaturg Basil Parnell-Luetgens, Assistant Director Sarah Behrend-Wilcox, Stage Manager Carrigan Hughes, Assistant Stage Manager Andrew McFarland, Understudies Ann Heitman (Elizabeth), Emma Lovell (Winnifred) and Emerson Johnson (Cuddy).  

For more information on productions from this wonderful theatrical department, visit their website at https://theatre.uark.edu.   

Photo Credit: Crystal Gooding/Gooding Photography

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