u Hay Fever was a comical play with a strong message. The actors
throughout this play steadily used others to gain their own attention.
The message this play left behind after many laughs was do not use
others, plain and simple.
u The space was a well-constructed thrust stage however, the stage was
not raised off the ground and the seats appeared to be mobile which
lead to the belief that this is an Environmental Theater. As for the
layout of the stage, there was a couch and a table in center stage for the
first two acts, a door to the unseen outside front of the house upstage
right, there were two large double doors upstage center leading to the
backyard garden, and a raised floor upstage left containing a piano, a
bookcase and a door leading to the home library. Stage left there was a
half spiral staircase that lead up to the second floor which had a
painting and lights that extended across to stage right. The second floor
also contained the bedrooms for the house but the doors were not in
sight. The detail was greater than expected: the hardwood floor
throughout the first floor seemed to be genuine, the actual bookcase
filled with real books not stage books, and the extremely large double
doors with translucent glass and floral designs lead to the Garden,
which featured an array of plants behind the doors. The entire space
was well lit for the duration of the play; the stage took place inside the
Bliss’ home so the bright lighting added a confortable feel to the inside
of the house. The theatre was nearly sold out; it was hard to spot an
empty seat, including the balcony and lower level seating. The crowd
contained nearly an even amount of student audience members and
senior citizens; there was few in the audience that appeared middle
aged.
u The play was well cast, the entire Bliss family did a great job showing
how overly dramatic and deceitful the family had become. Each actor
portrayed their character accurately; there were no standouts that didn’t
match the character. Each visitor in the first act seemed to be feasible as
far as the possibility of a relationship was concerned. All of the family
members acted genuine. There was one actor who stood out as a perfect
fit for his character. Taylor Rascher played Simon Bliss and played him
perfectly. Rascher’s character Simon was a young man who was
dramatic and romantic so much so it was almost to the point of
ridiculousness. Rascher stole the show in the first act when he was
romancing with Michelle Luz, who plays Myra Arundel. Rascher was
displaying his love for Michelle Luz (Myra) in the most dramatic of
fashions; he was playing the Bliss’ game of pretending to be in
complete love with someone and then a moment later change his mind.
Rascher was proclaiming his love with elegant speeches and coddling
up next to her and eventually kissing her. Rascher made this scene
particularly hilarious because he was completely over the top in typical
Bliss fashion. Of course, all of this was for naught because Luz ended
up kissing Joe Hubbard’s character David Bliss in act two and also
Rascher proclaimed his engagement to Caitlin Stagemoller’s character,
Jackie Coryton. Rascher made his voice more shrill and audible to
appear to be more dramatic and create more attention for himself. In the
same way, Rascher used grander gestures with his arms (flailing,
waving, etc.) to cause a more dramatic effect.
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