The Cadron Company put a new spin on old fairy tales in “Furry Tails with a Twist” Jan. 31 and Feb. 1 in Reynolds Performance Hall.
The cast consisted of freshmen theatre majors Colin Fowler and Abby Saveall.
As the only two actors on the stage, Fowler and Saveall depicted all the characters from the stories themselves.
Fowler said he loved seeing the kids’ reactions.
“They get so involved with the story and they eat it up,” he said.
Saveall said going from being in a 20-person cast to a cast of two was a brand new experience.
“I was incredibly lucky to be cast with Colin, who is a close friend of mine,” she said.
Fowler said because he and Saveall were good friends before the show, the energy is amazing.
Jennifer Hickok DeFratis wrote the script and UCA theatre business manager and production coordinator Liz Parker directed the play.
The play follows two actors as they set out to perform three well-known fairy tales.
However, the scripts get jumbled around, resulting in a comical mixture of the stories.
The first story becomes “Goldisocks and the Three Wolves.”
In the second fairy tale, “The Three Billy Trolls Gruff,” there is an evil pig that wants to eat garbage instead of a troll.
In the third fairy tale, “The Three Little Bears,” one of the actors chose three children from the audience to play the three little bears. This element of interaction with the public helped engage the viewers in the performance.
Saveall said the humor was adorable and the children’s laughter was rewarding. She said she also loved the costumes.
Parker said the crew started casting for the show last November. They started the blocking after winter break, so they set the play for three weeks into the semester.
“I think everybody loved [the performance],” Parker said. “It goes on tour this whole semester, so every Tuesday and Thursday morning they are going to a school around the area and performing.”
Director of Annual Giving Catherine Marhenke came with her husband and four-year-old daughter to see the performance.
“I liked it,” Marhenke said. “It was fun and it was short, which is good for little people, who don’t have lots of attention span. We like that the shows are free and they are here in Conway, so we don’t have to drive far. And they are always very fun for the little kids.”
Fowler said he started acting when he came to UCA last semester.
“I had always admired acting, and decided to try it once I got here because the program here is fantastic,” he said.
Costume and props design was by junior Madison Ledbetter and set design was by UCA Theatre’s Technical Director Tom Markenke.
