The Circus in Winter was an original production by Ball State students based on a novel of the same name by Cathy Day. The production was, luckily, free to freshmen. I picked up my ticket the day they were available, because I’d been hearing buzz all over campus about this show. I’d heard only good remarks, and my roommate, being a theater major, insisted I see it. I could not be more thankful I chose to get my ticket. The production was remarkable in so many ways, but most of all in the fact that students wrote and designed the musical. My high school was renowned for its theater program, so I’m no stranger to outstanding theatrical productions. All of the productions at my high school were, of course, already well known plays. I can’t imagine students, writing, choreographing, and designing the entire production. Every song or stage effect made me incredulous that students engineered the show. It gave me awed respect for Ball State’s theater program.
The novel, The Circus in Winter, in actuality follows many story lines. The play takes one of these story lines, that of a man named Wallace Porter, and focuses on the problems surrounding his character. The play begins with an upbeat musical number that gets the entire audience excited for the show. Then the whirlwind romance of a small town store owner, Wallace Porter, and a New York debutant named Irene begins. They marry, and unfortunately Irene dies an untimely death. Wallace takes emotional refuge in a circus that has traveled to Lima, Indiana (the location of Wallace’s business) for the winter. He decides to purchase the struggling show, and starts feeding the starving elephant. Porter is so entranced by the circus, because it is where he met his late wife, that he puts all he has into making the show regain its former glory. The star act, Jennie Dixianna, is a troubled girl who is in an abusive relationship with the cruel elephant caretaker, Jack. Wallace, who begins to fall in love with Jennie, tries to save her from herself. The show reaches an emotionally draining climax, and ends on a high note, but I won’t give too much away.
Throughout the entire show I was drawn further and further in to the lives of the characters and the plot. The show has very serious themes and issues, but keeps a light comedic undertone to balance it out. In the beginning, Irene talks about how wildly exciting the Indiana frontier must be (which, of course, got a few laughs from the Muncie crowd). The role of Wallace’s carefree cousin, Emory, also made the show more fun and relatable. Another interesting element was that of the elephant in the show. It was made from what appeared to be strategically wrapped fabric. It was not only cute, but also beautifully constructed. To bring an elephant alive on stage would not have been a simple task, and I was once again thoroughly impressed by the Ball State theater department.
The Circus in Winter was one of the best productions I have seen in a long time. When I try to describe it to others, I feel like there is so much to tell that I just spew broken fragments of praise for what was really a beautifully constructed show. It would be something that one has to see to understand the full impact, and I can only hope that Ball State does another production of it in the future.
Event Report 1:
Jeannette Walls 9/27/2011
Every freshman may not have read The Glass Castle, but at least the entire class of 2015 knows what it is. It is a best-seller about a poverty-stricken family of incredibly smart, complex people. This summer at orientation it was decreed that every freshman was to read Jeannette Walls’ amazing story. Yet, most people told me “it doesn’t really matter, you don’t HAVE to read it.” I couldn’t help but be intrigued by the concept, though, and I read the book… in less than two days. I could simply not stop reading the shocking stories. So, I made my mother read the book as well and we both discussed it and exclaimed how moving it was.
Next I came to Ball State and starting falling into a rhythm with my classes and, lo and behold, Jeannette was coming to Ball State. I was beside myself with excitement, and I couldn’t believe others didn’t share my anticipation. Of course on September 21st I was lined up at Emens auditorium to hear her speak. I get to my seat and I listen to her begin talking and it’s not like anything I was expecting. She is so humble, down to earth, and believable. She doesn’t talk like a high class journalist; you can still hear her West Virginia roots. She doesn’t tell stories of her fabulous life in New York, and she doesn’t condemn her parents for all her hardships. She said she viewed everything she went through as a gift. Every horrible event she survived was actually a valuable lesson, and she now has certain advantages over those who have not gone through their share of hardships. Of all the lessons she learned, she learned best how to take care of herself. The message I first got from The Glass Castle was that a person can rise above a horrible childhood and succeed. Yet, after hearing Jeannette talk about how she views her childhood, I feel like The Glass Castle is more about attitude and how a person deals with their problems. Everyone is going to have something undesirable happen to them in their life, it’s unavoidable. The way Jeannette chooses to take her unconventional childhood has to do with her spirit and optimism. She could view it as something that was a severe handicap in her life and as something that makes her success more impressive, but she calls it a gift.
I especially see Jeannette’s unique view of hardship when she describes the way her siblings felt about it, and how they still feel. Jeannette commented in her speech that her sister, Lori, is still bitter about their childhood. Lori doesn’t have as much contact with their mother as her sister. Jeannette’s brother Brain also became very angry when he revisited his childhood after he became a father, because he realized how getting basic necessities was not very difficult. I’m sure Jeannette feels some of this as well, but her determination to keep a positive attitude makes her so admirable.
In Honors 201, I feel like we’ve seen mostly ancient themes and values that don’t directly correspond to Walls’ tale of modern-day childhood poverty. Yet, there is a little connection I see to Odysseus. It might be a stretch, but both Odysseus and the Walls children had to overcome enormous obstacles. The Walls’ spend years trying to find a suitable home, and of course Odysseus has a long journey home as well. Both also show great persistence in their endeavors.
I absolutely loved being able to see Jeannette Walls speak. I probably have not been so interested in a speaker in a very long time, because she kept the conversation personable, relatable, and lively. The author of next year’s freshman reader will have trouble living up to Ms. Walls’ speech.
The Circus in Winter 10/8/11
The Circus in Winter was an original production by Ball State students based on a novel of the same name by Cathy Day. The production was, luckily, free to freshmen. I picked up my ticket the day they were available, because I’d been hearing buzz all over campus about this show. I’d heard only good remarks, and my roommate, being a theater major, insisted I see it. I could not be more thankful I chose to get my ticket. The production was remarkable in so many ways, but most of all in the fact that students wrote and designed the musical. My high school was renowned for its theater program, so I’m no stranger to outstanding theatrical productions. All of the productions at my high school were, of course, already well known plays. I can’t imagine students, writing, choreographing, and designing the entire production. Every song or stage effect made me incredulous that students engineered the show. It gave me awed respect for Ball State’s theater program.
The novel, The Circus in Winter, in actuality follows many story lines. The play takes one of these story lines, that of a man named Wallace Porter, and focuses on the problems surrounding his character. The play begins with an upbeat musical number that gets the entire audience excited for the show. Then the whirlwind romance of a small town store owner, Wallace Porter, and a New York debutant named Irene begins. They marry, and unfortunately Irene dies an untimely death. Wallace takes emotional refuge in a circus that has traveled to Lima, Indiana (the location of Wallace’s business) for the winter. He decides to purchase the struggling show, and starts feeding the starving elephant. Porter is so entranced by the circus, because it is where he met his late wife, that he puts all he has into making the show regain its former glory. The star act, Jennie Dixianna, is a troubled girl who is in an abusive relationship with the cruel elephant caretaker, Jack. Wallace, who begins to fall in love with Jennie, tries to save her from herself. The show reaches an emotionally draining climax, and ends on a high note, but I won’t give too much away.
Throughout the entire show I was drawn further and further in to the lives of the characters and the plot. The show has very serious themes and issues, but keeps a light comedic undertone to balance it out. In the beginning, Irene talks about how wildly exciting the Indiana frontier must be (which, of course, got a few laughs from the Muncie crowd). The role of Wallace’s carefree cousin, Emory, also made the show more fun and relatable. Another interesting element was that of the elephant in the show. It was made from what appeared to be strategically wrapped fabric. It was not only cute, but also beautifully constructed. To bring an elephant alive on stage would not have been a simple task, and I was once again thoroughly impressed by the Ball State theater department.
The Circus in Winter was one of the best productions I have seen in a long time. When I try to describe it to others, I feel like there is so much to tell that I just spew broken fragments of praise for what was really a beautifully constructed show. It would be something that one has to see to understand the full impact, and I can only hope that Ball State does another production of it in the future.
Event Report 1:
Jeannette Walls 9/27/2011
Every freshman may not have read The Glass Castle, but at least the entire class of 2015 knows what it is. It is a best-seller about a poverty-stricken family of incredibly smart, complex people. This summer at orientation it was decreed that every freshman was to read Jeannette Walls’ amazing story. Yet, most people told me “it doesn’t really matter, you don’t HAVE to read it.” I couldn’t help but be intrigued by the concept, though, and I read the book… in less than two days. I could simply not stop reading the shocking stories. So, I made my mother read the book as well and we both discussed it and exclaimed how moving it was.
Next I came to Ball State and starting falling into a rhythm with my classes and, lo and behold, Jeannette was coming to Ball State. I was beside myself with excitement, and I couldn’t believe others didn’t share my anticipation. Of course on September 21st I was lined up at Emens auditorium to hear her speak. I get to my seat and I listen to her begin talking and it’s not like anything I was expecting. She is so humble, down to earth, and believable. She doesn’t talk like a high class journalist; you can still hear her West Virginia roots. She doesn’t tell stories of her fabulous life in New York, and she doesn’t condemn her parents for all her hardships. She said she viewed everything she went through as a gift. Every horrible event she survived was actually a valuable lesson, and she now has certain advantages over those who have not gone through their share of hardships. Of all the lessons she learned, she learned best how to take care of herself. The message I first got from The Glass Castle was that a person can rise above a horrible childhood and succeed. Yet, after hearing Jeannette talk about how she views her childhood, I feel like The Glass Castle is more about attitude and how a person deals with their problems. Everyone is going to have something undesirable happen to them in their life, it’s unavoidable. The way Jeannette chooses to take her unconventional childhood has to do with her spirit and optimism. She could view it as something that was a severe handicap in her life and as something that makes her success more impressive, but she calls it a gift.
I especially see Jeannette’s unique view of hardship when she describes the way her siblings felt about it, and how they still feel. Jeannette commented in her speech that her sister, Lori, is still bitter about their childhood. Lori doesn’t have as much contact with their mother as her sister. Jeannette’s brother Brain also became very angry when he revisited his childhood after he became a father, because he realized how getting basic necessities was not very difficult. I’m sure Jeannette feels some of this as well, but her determination to keep a positive attitude makes her so admirable.
In Honors 201, I feel like we’ve seen mostly ancient themes and values that don’t directly correspond to Walls’ tale of modern-day childhood poverty. Yet, there is a little connection I see to Odysseus. It might be a stretch, but both Odysseus and the Walls children had to overcome enormous obstacles. The Walls’ spend years trying to find a suitable home, and of course Odysseus has a long journey home as well. Both also show great persistence in their endeavors.
I absolutely loved being able to see Jeannette Walls speak. I probably have not been so interested in a speaker in a very long time, because she kept the conversation personable, relatable, and lively. The author of next year’s freshman reader will have trouble living up to Ms. Walls’ speech.