Our Town production invites reflection on life’s fleeting moments
Mississippi College’s Lyric Stage sets attendance record during recent run
Our Town, a Pulitzer Prize-winning play written by Thornton Wilder, was recently performed by Mississippi College’s Lyric Stage from March 27-29. On its opening night for MC students, the production broke the record for highest opening night attendance in the Lyric Stage’s history.
The show tells the story of a fictional small town called Grover’s Corners in New Hampshire. The plot follows the residents’ stories over 12 years of their lives. It observes the Gibbs and Webb families through their life changes, the mundane and the chaotic. The stage manager who narrates the show brings the audience through three acts—Act 1: “Daily Life,” Act 2: “Love and Marriage,” and Act 3: “Death and Eternity.”
The show mainly focuses on the love story between Emily Webb and George Gibbs, their family dynamics and other residents in the town, weaving a tale of the significance of being human. The true impact of the show lies in the simple fact that life is fleeting; one must do the best they can with the time they have been granted.
Slade Haney, a senior at Mississippi College, played George Gibbs. “Throughout the show, you can see how he matures,” Haney said. “In Act 1, he’s a very boyish character because he’s a teenager, and though he’s still young in the rest of the show, he sees a lot of maturing through the death of his wife, through getting married, and realizing what his values are in life.” He explained the difference between this role and his other roles is that George is a normal guy, meaning that he does not have to act overly animated. That is what makes the show so profound—the actors are telling the stories of people experiencing normal life.
Robert Hight was the stage manager in this production of the play, and it had an impact on him. “Perspective,” Hight said. “One of the nights my grandmother came and watched the show, and I was like, I don’t really know how I’m gonna feel about talking to my grandmother about this show afterwards.” The play highlights the importance of taking each day as it comes and living in the moment.
Helen Bunger, a Mississippi College student and audience member on opening night, was moved by the performance. “I think that was kind of a time that I could step back and appreciate,” Bunger said. “We need to take every day for [the Lord], we’re not even promised tomorrow. We are promised today, so I think that was a really neat kind of reminder of that.”
Peyton Miller, a freshman at Mississippi College, was Emily Webb. The character was integral to the significance of the show. Emily experiences growing up, falling in love, marriage and even death, and the impact of these events is realized by the other characters around her throughout the story. Peyton explained the importance of portraying Emily in an accurate light, as she has never experienced grief such as is experienced in Our Town. “And then on top of that, I was constantly throughout the term of this show—I’d be in the middle of class like wow, I’m so grateful that I can have an education, that I can be here, that I can sit in a seat, just anything,” Miller said. “I found myself walking around campus, just completely in awe of God’s goodness.”
The show had audiences in laughter and tears, and the overwhelming reaction was one of reflection and appreciation for life. “Oh, earth,” Emily Webb says near the end of the show, “you’re too wonderful for anyone to realize you.”
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