shows to challenge long-held notions, welcome students to college life, and draw emotions and deep thinking from the audience. CloseUp, now under the direction of Gayle Hurn,
T
celebrated 15 years with a show called “Everything in Between” at the Student Center in March. The show included scenes like Real World Boot Camp, which put a fun spin on life after graduation, and Imagine It, asking the audience to consider body image and embrace who they are. We join some of CloseUp’s founding members 15 years later, as they revisit their
experiences from their fi rst show and ponder how it’s aff ected their lives and careers. We’ll learn how they came up with ideas, and some of the more challenging aspects of being in the Troupe. So sit back, relax and enjoy the show!
Characters: Jessica “Decky” Alexander (BA91, MFA96) . . . . . . . . . . . . Founding mother of CloseUp and currently a professor of theatre at EMU
Mary Larkin (BS01) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . LGBT Resource Center coordinator at EMU and original cast member of CloseUp
April Badon (BA06, MA10) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Teacher of cosmetol- ogy at the Aveda Institute of Ann Arbor, and original cast member of CloseUp
Derek McGill (BS99) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CEO of T e Gilbert Residence and original cast member of CloseUp.
SCENE I: GET ING STARTED DECKY
At the time (1997) I was a lecturer here, and I was running a similar program at the University of Michigan. So some people from EMU asked me to launch a comparable program here. We set up at Snow Health Center; I thought a lot of the issues we were dealing with were health-related issues, social issues, personal wellness, things of that sort.
he story thus far: Since 1997, Eastern’s CloseUp Theatre Troupe has been pushing the envelope of traditional theatre entertainment. The Troupe puts on annual
Decky
Photo portraits by Alex Mandrila
Eastern | SUMMER 2013 39
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