By Anna Rhodes
The Appalachian State University Department of Theatre and Dance will showcase the talents of its students in a staged reading of the Neil LaBute play “reasons to be pretty.” The production will take place at College of Fine and Applied Arts’ newest venue, HOW Space, on Feb. 9 and 10 at 7 p.m. The reading is free to the public, but donations for student scholarships are welcomed.
Wondering if one is “pretty enough” is a common issue faced by many, and Neil LaBute is not one to shy away from the subject. The third installment in his trilogy series, “reasons to be pretty” looks to challenge the modern obsession with beauty. The first of his plays to be performed on Broadway, it garnered three Tony Award nominations, including Best Play. The story revolves around a tight-knit group of four friends who are thrown into turmoil over offhand remarks about beauty or lack thereof. As their relationships crumble, the friends are forced to confront a sea of deceit, infidelity and betrayed trust in their journey to answer the oh-so-American question: How much is pretty worth?
Director Brad Archer, who is also a lecturer of theatre arts at Appalachian, chose to do this play because he believes the way we define our communities is important.
“It’s good for us to reflect on this as a society, and it’s important for us to look at ourselves through an objective lens,” he shared. “It’s what helps us define our society and the things that we wish to change about it.”
A play to stir thought and start discussions, “reasons to be pretty” will feature Appalachian students Jacob Jones, a freshman film studies major from Wilmington, as Kent; Max Probst, a senior theatre performance major from Matthews, as Greg; Anna Rhodes, a junior general theatre major from Hendersonville as Steph; and Hannah Magee, a freshman theatre major from Lexington, in the role of Carly.
HOW Space is located at 182 Howard Street directly across from The Local. Parking is available in an adjacent lot on Howard Street, in the University Recreation Center lot, at the Beasley Media Complex or in the Raley parking lot, a short distance from the venue.
About the Department of Theatre and Dance
The Department of Theatre and Dance is one of seven departments housed in Appalachian’s College of Fine and Applied Arts. Its mission is to facilitate transformative experiences for students and the public, which cultivate compassionate, creative and collaborative communities through theatre and dance. The department also offers coursework for integrated learning through the arts to the general university student population. Its dynamic co-curricular production program provides exemplary theatre and dance experiences to departmental students, the university community and the region.
About Appalachian
Appalachian State University, in North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains, prepares students to lead purposeful lives as global citizens who understand and engage their responsibilities in creating a sustainable future for all. The transformational Appalachian experience promotes a spirit of inclusion that brings people together in inspiring ways to acquire and create knowledge, to grow holistically, to act with passion and determination, and embrace diversity and difference. As one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina system, Appalachian enrolls about 18,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and graduate majors.
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Media Contact
Keith Martin
MartinKT1@appstate.edu
704.608.2755
Playwright Neil LeBute
Students in Appalachian's Department of Theatre and Dance will present LeBute's "reasons to be pretty" at 7 p.m. Feb. 9-10 at HOW Space. Photo submitted