Talk about a comeback. Ovid, that ancient Roman wordsmith, wrote his “Metamorphoses” more than two millennia ago. Now, this month, there are two productions of the play based on that famous work running simultaneously on Central Florida college campuses.
You can catch Mary Zimmerman’s stage adaptation of “Metamorphoses” first at Rollins College, Nov. 3-18. Coincidentally, a separate production at Theatre UCF runs Nov. 9-19.
“Metamorphoses” is a collection of stories — the old, old myths that tell us about human nature — with an overarching theme of change. Specifically, the play reminds us that change is inevitable by retelling the classical stories of King Midas, Orpheus, Aphrodite and other mythical characters.
Their fictional experiences illustrate the real-life joys and sorrows of the human experience.
The centerpiece of every production of “Metamorphoses” is something quite out of the ordinary: A giant pool of water.
Rollins College unveils $8 million Tiedtke Theatre & Dance Centre
Rollins College will use its production of “Metamorphoses” to christen its new Sally K. Albrecht Studio Theatre inside the Tiedtke Theatre & Dance Centre, which opened in February.
“We’ve been dreaming about this space for over 20 years,” says Thomas Ouellette, director of theatre at the Winter Park college. “We needed a special title for the inaugural production in Rollins’ first custom-built black-box theater. Mary Zimmerman’s ‘Metamorphoses’ is unlike anything we’ve ever produced on campus.”
A promotional photograph in an already-established pool features Ani Henry-Walker, a Rollins student who plays the Greek god Aphrodite.
“The new space feels like a safe haven,” she says in a statement released by Rollins. “It’s very special to be a part of the first show in this building that will hold our theater family for years to come.”
Meanwhile, the theater department is hard at work constructing a pool from plywood with a liner while determining the logistics of keeping it full and warm enough for the actors.
Similar conversations are taking place at the University of Central Florida, which also has constructed its pool of plywood with a heavy-duty pond liner.
The pool has varying depths of water, down to 12 inches, says Theatre UCF spokeswoman McKenzie Lakey.
“It’s made to resemble a stone reflecting pool surrounded by a stone deck, alluding to the land and the sea,” she says. “We are also using large sails representing the sky, playing into the nautical and transformational themes of the show.”
At Theatre UCF, “Metamorphoses” is directed by artistic director Julia Listengarten, with movement direction by Christopher Niess. Tickets are $25, $10 with valid UCF ID. The production will be in the smaller, black-box theater on the university’s east Orange County Campus, inside Building 6 at 12700 Pegasus Drive. Patrons should park in lot D1.
Go to arts.cah.ucf.edu/event/metamorphoses for more information.
The Rollins production will be directed by alumnus Nick Bazo and Ouellette, with choreography by Robin Gerchman. It is produced in partnership with the William Daniel Mills Theatre Company Apprentice Program, in which local high-school students from diverse backgrounds considering theater careers work on- and backstage.
Tickets cost $20, with discounts for students, seniors, groups, and Rollins alumni. The Tiedtke Theatre & Dance Centre sits behind the college’s Annie Russell Theatre on its Winter Park campus at 1000 Holt Ave. For more information, go to rollins.edu/annie.
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