As January comes to a close, the celebration of the life of one of America’s greatest heroes begins to take hold across the country.
Throughout January, Shippensburg University’s Office of Social Equity held a series of events to remember the remarkable life of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. including a reader’s theater-style performance of “The Mountaintop.”
“The Mountaintop,” a critically acclaimed stage production, had three select scenes from its script read by the Shippensburg University Readers Theater on Wednesday Jan. 23 at Old Main Chapel.
They performed the two readings of the play at two free shows at 3:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.
“The Mountaintop” is a fictional depiction of the hours leading up to the assassination of King, written by Katori Hall. The play centers on King and the maid at his hotel, Camae, who strikes up a relationship with King and helps him through the last hours of his life.
The readings did not incorporate the entire production. Three key scenes were chosen that best represented the heart and message of the play.
The first scene featured senior Nick Sentman reading the role of King while Tori Morgan, junior, read the role of Camae. The second scene featured senior Alyssa Cassidy, as Camae. Cassidy also directed the reading.
Reading with Cassidy was Romarr Mayne, a senior who read the part of King.
The third and final scene featured senior Alyssa Gosling, reading the role of Camae along with freshman Andrew Cruz, reading the part of King.
The reading was narrated off-stage by Eldon Graham, and the stage manager for the show was Anthony Jacoby.
The entire cast and crew did a wonderful job with the production. The portrayal of King by these SU students did justice to the great American hero.
The readings were sponsored by the Office of Social Equity at Shippensburg, which helps to ensure equal opportunities for all students and faculty on campus.
Melodye Wehrung, the executive director of the Office of Social Equity, gave the opening remarks at the performance and gave some inspiring words about the hero that King really was.
The readings are just one part of Shippensburg University’s 17th Annual Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. celebration this year. The next event that is part of the celebration is the 25th Annual March for Humanity on Thursday Jan. 31.
The program, sponsored by the Office of Social Equity as well as the African American Organization, will be held in the Multi-Purpose Room in the Ceddia Union Building.
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