The Burrell High School Theatre Company this week will premiere “Artist Retreat,” a comedy by a Seattle playwright who collaborated with Burrell students on revisions over two years.
Matt Smith, an old friend of Burrell music director Martin Connolly, penned the wild comedy following the travails of a retired dancer, Mother Dee, and her aging mansion frequented by a troupe of artists and creatives. The show runs Thursday through Saturday at Burrell High School.
Connolly approached Smith years ago looking for material for Burrell’s student drama group. Smith offered “Artist Retreat,” which was in the early stages of development.
Burrell students worked with Smith on drafts and table readings over two years.
“The collaborative process was a unique experience for us,” said Connolly, who attended Duquesne University with Smith.
Smith credits Burrell’s drama program in helping make the script a reality.
“They were instrumental,” he said. For example, the students’ questions about the script alerted Smith to unclear language and character questions.
“At each revision, they provided character insights and asked important questions,” Smith said. One of those students, senior Ella Uzlik, was a sophomore when she had her first reading of “Artist Retreat.” Uzlik said she learned a lot about the craftsmanship that goes into a play.
“I finally get to perform it in my senior year. That is really fun,” said Uzlik, 17, of Lower Burrell, who plays the main character, Mother Dee.
“The idea of creating the characters from scratch — they may come from inspiration — it’s an amazing opportunity to play these characters,” Uzlik said.
Premiering a play geared to the sensibility of the student drama club is a great opportunity, Connolly said. Smith’s original play is a standout in the sometimes limited field of standard high school drama.
“It’s hard for a high school to find new plays,” Connolly said. “New stuff that is written for the stage is typically edgier than you want to put on a high school stage. And stuff written for high schools is bad — watered-down stuff that doesn’t address meaningful issues.”
Smith said he is excited about the play’s premiere at Burrell on Thursday. “It was a dream working with these students.”
Mary Ann Thomas is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Mary at 724-226-4691, mthomas@triblive.com or via Twitter .
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November 14, 2021 at 06:01PM
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Burrell theater students collaborated with Seattle playwright to hone 'Artist Retreat' - TribLIVE
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