Bluefield College Theatre will present life on the American frontier from the perspective of the mothers, wives and daughters who called the land their home in the drama “Quilters,” Friday through Monday, October 14-17.
Performances will take place at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Saturday and Monday, October 14, 15 and 17. The Sunday matinee, October 16, will begin at 2 p.m. All shows will take place in BC’s Harman Chapel Auditorium, where admission at the door will be $10 for adults and $5 for students and senior citizens.
Written by Molly Newman and Barbara Damashek, “Quilters” tells the story of the women who settled the western frontier in the late 19th Century — the ones who cooked the meals, raised the children, gave birth to the babies, and turned log cabins and sod houses into “home.”
“The play uses some really fun storytelling techniques,” said BC Theatre artistic director Charles Reese. “For instance, everyone in the cast plays several characters. Many of the young ladies in the cast had a real kick playing male characters, like cowboys and doctors.”
“Quilters” uses the image of the patchwork quilt that kept frontier families warm and safe as a metaphor for these prairie women’s lives. The BC rendition also uses music, directed by Dr. Barbara Hudson, associate professor of music.
“It’s not a traditional musical,” said Reese. “The music is all based on Appalachian hymns and Scotch-Irish folk songs with a distinctly modern feel. The harmonies and rhythms are challenging, but the music has a haunting quality to it that sticks with you.”
The play features the talents of Bluefield College theatre professor Rebecca McCoy-Reese as Sarah McKendree Bonham and BC students Jennifer Bohannan, Samantha Corker, Courtney Dutton, Angel Hackney, Della Limbert, Katherine Santschi, and Summer Wilding as her seven daughters.
For more information about “Quilters,” contact the BC Theatre Department by email at [email protected] or by phone at 276.326.4244 or 276.326.4213.