College of Fine and Applied Arts

BOONE, N.C. – The Department of Theatre and Dance (T&D) at Appalachian State University is proud to present the High Country premiere of “oh to be pure again” by multi-award winning playwright Kira Rockwell. The production takes place at 7 p.m. from February 25 through 28 with a 2 p.m. matinee of Sunday, March 1 in the Valborg Theatre on the university’s main campus in Boone, NC. Tickets are $10 for students, $15 for Faculty/staff, and $17 for adults and are now available online through the T&D website at theatreanddance.appstate.edu, as well by phone or in person at the Schaefer Center for the Arts box office.

A brief description of the play is as follows: “During one hot Texas summer at a Charismatic Christian camp, an idealistic counselor grapples with her own doubts while shepherding the senior girls on their spiritual journeys. This visceral ode to female desire, belief, and courage explores what it is to grow up in a religious culture simultaneously obsessed with purity and brimming with beauty.”

Rockwell is an Atlanta-based playwright and educator, originally from the heart of Texas. Selected plays include “oh to be pure again” (world premiere production: Actor’s Express); “Holy Chicken Sandwich” (workshop production: Boston New Works Festival); “Wicked Bitter Beast(s)” (development: Alabama Shakespeare Festival); and “The Tragic Ecstasy of Girlhood” (workshop production: Boston Playwrights’ Theatre). Her work has also been developed with The Kennedy Center, National New Play Network, Great Plains Theatre Commons, Working Title Playwrights, and more.

Kira Rockwell

Her writing awards include the Judith Royer Excellence in Playwriting Award, Second Place Recipient of the Paula Vogel Playwriting Award, Fellowship with the Mass Cultural Council, and Genre Gabriel Moore Playwriting Award, among others. She holds a BFA in Theatre Performance and an MFA in Playwriting from Boston University. Currently, she teaches Dramatic Writing for the Stage and Screen at Georgia State University.

Playwright Rockwell will hold a Q&A after the performance on Wednesday, February 25, sponsored by The Hughlene Bostian Frank Visiting Writers Series, Department of English, and the Department of Theatre & Dance. Religion scholar Sara Moslener will hold a Q&A after the performance on Thursday, February 26, sponsored by the Department of Philosophy & Religion, Department of Interdisciplinary Studies, Gender and Women’s Studies Program, Women’s Center, and Watauga Residential Community.

The Hughlene Bostian Frank Visiting Writers Series is named in honor of the late Hughlene Bostian Frank ’68, a recipient of the 2013 Appalachian Alumni Association Outstanding Service Award, past member of Appalachian State University's Board of Trustees and Foundation, past member of the College of Arts and Sciences Advancement Council, and generous supporter of Appalachian. Learn more at visitingwriters.appstate.edu.

The App State production is directed by Dr. Paulette Marty, Professor of Theatre Arts, who joined the Department of Theatre and Dance in 2004. Her teaching specialties are theatre history, play analysis, dramaturgy, directing, and cross-disciplinary topics. Paulette's research specialties include contemporary stage directors, Elizabethan theatre and spectacle, and the performance of folklore. She has published in various theatre journals and periodicals, is the author of "Contemporary Women Stage Directors: Conversations on Craft" (Methuen Drama, 2019), and serves as a production dramaturg and director on T&D departmental productions.

Dr. Paulette Marty

In her director's notes for the playbill, Dr. Marty says, in part, that "A good play is about many things, all of which resonate differently with different people. To me, this play is about finding the courage to defy expectations.

"Defying such expectations takes tremendous courage. Sometimes you can muster it, and sometimes you cannot. But it's easier when you're in community. It's easier to say no when you are supported by people who will stand behind you when you stand up for yourself, or by a higher power or belief that will steady your voice when it shakes, or by a natural world whose pulse will slow your pounding heart. When we can find that communal connection - at camp, at church, in the theatre, anywhere - we can also find courage and, when we're really lucky, bright moments of pure joy. I hope you leave this show feeling a little more courageous and a little more joyful."

In addition to her directorial responsibilities, Dr. Marty is also serving as intimacy choreographer for the production. The creative and design team for "oh to be pure again" includes T&D faculty members Michael Helms as scenic designer, Mike Riggs as lighting designer, Dr. Gina Grandi as dramaturg, with students Lucy Lloyd and Lauren Creighton as costume and makeup designer and sound designer, respectively. T&D staff members Matt Tyson serves as technical director and Kristin Grieneisen supervises the costume shop.

The all-student cast of 11 includes the following Appalachian State University undergraduates, listed alphabetically: Dorothy Benninghofen, Lee Bodenhamer, Alexis Carr, Kayne Domenech, Sean El-Koussa, Kiana King, Mason, Delta McCalister, Anabel Merriam, Hiedy Almonte Payero, and Lena Shandor.

Content Advisory: This show includes depictions of sexual activity, discussion of parent loss, allusions to self-harm, and depictions of and discussion around disordered eating and disordered eating behavior.

The Valborg Theatre is located on campus at the north side of Chapell Wilson Hall on Howard Street in Boone. The theatre entrance faces the back of the Turchin Center for the Visual Arts on King Street. Parking is available after 5 p.m. on campus in faculty/staff lots and after 5:30 p.m. in the College Street parking deck near Belk Library and Information Commons.

Valborg Theatre

A full listing of the Department of Theatre and Dance Spring 2026 season is available at theatreanddance.appstate.edu. Directions and parking information may be found on the Visitor Parking page.

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About the Department of Theatre and Dance
One of seven departments housed in the College of Fine and Applied Arts, the Department of Theatre and Dance’s 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. theatreanddance.appstate.edu.

About the College of Fine and Applied Arts
Appalachian State University’s College of Fine and Applied Arts is a dynamic and innovative group of seven academic departments, bringing together a variety of perspectives, experiences, and real-world education to provide unique opportunities for student success. The college has more than 3,500 undergraduate and graduate majors. Its departments are Applied Design, Art, Communication, Military Science and Leadership, Sustainable Development, Sustainable Technology and the Built Environment, and Theatre and Dance. Learn more at cfaa.appstate.edu.

About Appalachian State University
As the premier public undergraduate institution in the Southeast, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives as global citizens who understand and engage their responsibilities in creating a sustainable future for all. The 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 to embrace diversity and difference. Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Appalachian is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System. Appalachian enrolls 21,795 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio, and offers more than 150 undergraduate and graduate majors.