CCM Drama Presents Eugene O'Neill's Comedy 'Ah, Wilderness' Feb. 10-14

The University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) resumes its Mainstage Series with Eugene O’Neill’s 

Ah, Wilderness!: A Comedy of Recollection in Three Acts

, playing

Feb. 11-14

with a special preview performance on Wednesday, Feb. 10. The show also bids a fond farewell to its director, and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and Graduate Studies,

R. Terrell Finney

as he retires from full-time status at CCM.

The words “Eugene O’Neill” and “comedy” are rarely used in the same sentence unless that sentence is “Eugene O’Neill does NOT write comedy.” The Pulitzer Prize-winning writer of

Long Day’s Journey into Night

and

Mourning Becomes Electra

is primarily known for his semi-autobiographical plays about characters who struggle to maintain their hopes and aspirations but ultimately slide into despair and disillusionment. Ah, Wilderness! is not one of those plays.

Set in an idyllic Connecticut town (presumably New London, O’Neill’s hometown) on the Fourth of July weekend of 1906, the play focuses on the Miller family and their 16-year-old son Richard, whose coming of age story offers a tender portrait of small town family values, teenage growing pains, and young love.

“It’s really quite the opposite of a typical O’Neill family story,” says director R. Terrell Finney. “The subtitle of the play is ‘A Comedy of Recollection,’ so my take on it is this is the family unit that O’Neill wishes he had.”

Even though it’s a comedy, the show still has plenty of the classic O’Neill depth-of-character for which he is known, “If it were written by a playwright of lesser skill, it could verge on the sentimental, but [O’Neill] brings elements that his other plays deal with: alcoholism, squandered love, intolerance and political strife. So, although it is a very loving and romantic portrait of a family, it has some depth as well,” explains Finney.

CCM’s production will be very true to the original look and feel of the play as written. “We’ve tried to create a world that’s going to let us live in 1906, so everything on stage is very period-specific,” says Finney. For example, it was important to obtain the exact music requested by O’Neill for various parts of the play, “I have to thank Dr. bruce mcclung from the Department of Musicology; he really helped us locate the music and source material so we could stay true to the original script,” Finney adds.

• Listen to director R. Terrell Finney and theatre critic Rick Pender discuss Ah, Wilderness! on WVXU's Around Cincinnati.

Ah! Wilderness!

’s tender feel makes it a fitting farewell for it’s director, R. Terrell Finney. Finney’s tenure as a full-time faculty member will come to an end this semester after 33 years of service as a member of the Department of Drama and head of CCM’s Division of Opera, Musical Theatre, Dramatic Arts and Arts Administration (now known as the Division of Theatre Arts, Production and Arts Administration, or TAPAA). Finney has most recently served as Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and Graduate Studies at CCM.

Over his time at CCM, Finney’s approach to directing has changed, he says, for the better, “I’d like to think I’m more relaxed than when I started! Sometimes you just have to roll with the punches in the theater. I’ve also really come to respect and trust actor instinct. If a director can open a door to the creativity the actor can bring, he’s done his job.”

Finney says directing

Ah Wilderness!

has reinvigorated his love for the creative process and, even though he’s entering a much-deserved retirement, he hopes to stay involved in the future, “I’ve had a ball directing this show. It’s been six years since I’ve directed and it’s been so liberating. It’s amazing to be involved in the creative process, so if you had asked me, without having done this show, what I wanted to do in retirement I may have just said, ‘Oh, tend my garden,’ but now I would hope that I can continue to direct. I’m not quite ready to be put out to pasture!”

The Company

• Jonah Sorscher as Tommy Miller
• Olivia Passafiume as Mildred Miller
• Owen Alderson as Arthur Miller
• Katie Langham as Essie Miller
• Rachel Baumgarten as Lily Miller
• Devan Pruitt as Nat Miller
• Andrew Iannacci as Sid Davis
• Andrew Huyler Ramsey as Richard Miller
• Spencer Lackey as David McComber
• Mickey Tropeano as Norah
• Isaac Hickox-Young as Went Selby
• Annie Grove as Belle
• James Egbert as Bartender
• Ryan Garrett as Salesman
• Emily Walton as Muriel McComber
  

The Creative Team

• R. Terrell Finney, director
• Thomas C. Umfrid and Whitney Glover, scenic designers
• Adam Ditzel, lighting designer
• Mathew D. Birchmeier, sound designer
• Maria Lenn, costume designer
• Missy White, wig & make-up designer
• k. Jenny Jones, fight choreographer
• Scott Slucher, stage manager
  

Performance Times

• 8 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 10 (preview)
• 8 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 11
• 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 12
• 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 13
• 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 14
  

Location

Patricia Corbett Theater, CCM Village

University of Cincinnati

Purchasing Tickets

Tickets to

Ah, Wilderness!

are $27-31 for adults, $17-20 for non-UC students and $15-18 UC students with a valid ID. Tickets to the Feb. 10 preview performance are just $15.

Tickets can be purchased in person at the CCM Box Office, over the telephone at 513-556-4183 or online at

ccm.uc.edu/boxoffice/mainstage/ah-wilderness

.

Parking and Directions

Parking is available in the CCM Garage (located at the base of Corry Boulevard off Jefferson Avenue) and additional garages throughout the UC campus. Please visit

uc.edu/parking

for more information on parking rates.

For detailed maps and directions, please visit

uc.edu/visitors

. Additional parking is available off-campus at the new U Square complex on Calhoun Street and other neighboring lots.

For directions to CCM Village, visit

ccm.uc.edu/about/directions

.

____

CCM Season Presenting Sponsor and Musical Theatre Program Sponsor: The Otto M. Budig Family Foundation

Mainstage Season Production Sponsor: Macy’s

Community Partner: ArtsWave

Ah, Wilderness!: A Comedy of Recollection in Three Acts

is presented by special arrangement with SAMUEL FRENCH, INC.