Theater at Roanoke College performed their first show of the season! “John Proctor is the Villain” by Kimberly Bellflower is a play about teenage girls experiencing relationships and finding their own voices while studying “The Crucible” during the “Me Too” movement. This show was put together in three weeks and performed in the Studio Theater.
I was able to interview Jesslyn McAllister, the costume designer, and Lilly Raboin, who played Shelby about their experience!
First up, Jesslyn.
Q: “What part of this show has been the most fun?”
A: “The most fun has been seeing all the pieces come together. You start with a shirt then bam it looks like something the character would wear…I’m thankful for everyone who helped bring the vision to life.”
Q: “What has been the most challenging part of this show?”
A: “This is my first time costume designing a show so the most challenging part for me has been trying to communicate with my peers as someone who is…making the costume design decisions.”
Q: “What will you take from this experience?”
A: “I have learned a lot from this process, and I still have a lot to learn. I’m so proud of the cast and the crew for telling this story in such a short production period and happy that they trusted me in putting them in costumes for the show.”
Next up, Lilly!
Q: “What has been the most challenging part of this production?”
A: “…The time frame. This show is around 90 minutes, but there’s still a lot to cover and a lot…to remember, having only a few short weeks made it hard to memorize using the same strategies as before…”
Q: “What are you going to take away from this experience?”
A: “I am going to take a lot away from this experience; this was my first college production, so I learned…from the new direction… I am also going to take a lot away from my character as Shelby. She is a complicated girl with complicated feelings, and it was a difficult experience to try and tell her story justice.”
Q: “If this experience was longer, what is something you’d add to your character?”
A: “I’d want to delve into intensity versus volume; I…take the intensity and make it loud instead of the intensity it requires. I feel…with more time, I could…feel and experience these complex emotions…”
Sabrina Rogers
Section Editor
