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Osprey Theater Company Steals Our Hearts Again
Jillian Jackson '25, Animas Quill
After nearly three months of rehearsing, designing, and working with fellow theatre artists from across our community, the Osprey Theatre Company is again ready to perform! You can catch their newest play, The Scarlet Heart, this weekend at the Durango Arts Center.
The Scarlet Heart is a one-act play, roughly 40 minutes in length, written by Allison Williams. It is written in the tradition of “Commedia Dell'Arte, a style of theatre originating in Italy in the 14th century that became popular throughout Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries. The plot centers on three thieves who are bent on stealing a valuable gem, and along the way, they encounter many comical characters, playful situations, and shenanigans of love and adventure.
This genre of theatre is known for its "stock characters;" some of which can be seen modernized in sitcoms and comedies. For example, the “Zanni” character is exemplified in Homer Simpson, and we see elements of the “Arlecchino” archetype in goofy characters such Steve Urkel and Screech from Saved by the Bell. In traditional Commedia Dell’Arte, the actors wear specific masks for each character (except for the Lovers), and the Osprey actors will do the same.
AHS Theatre teacher Joy Kilpatrick speaks excitedly about the changes and growth she has experienced this semester in her Voice, Acting, and Movement classes since last year. She mentioned her excitement about the fresh faces that have joined, as well as having more students show a passion for working behind the scenes as stage hands and assistant directors. She is also expanding the community connections that support the class, sharing that “our AHS theatre department is in its growing stages and therefore relies heavily on community support.”
This includes bringing in outside experts to add layers of expertise to the learning. To expose the students to the nuts and bolts of Commedia Dell’Arte, Joy invited professional theatre artist Zachary Chiero to engage our theatrical Ospreys in learning more about the genre from a new perspective. Joy shared, “Zachary Chiero has experience with mask work and the stock characters of Commedia Dell'Arte, so it was a wonderful opportunity for the students to get to work with a professional actor/director from our community.” Some members of the Osprey community may be familiar with Zachary’s comedic genius, having seen him as Touchstone the Clown in Merely Players’ As You Like It, where he married the giddy shepherdess Audrey, played by our very own JMac!
Joy elaborated on the community support she receives in her work with the AHS troupe: “We are extremely grateful for our ongoing relationship with the Durango Arts Center. They are very supportive of educational theatre and know that we don't currently have our own stage to perform on. Like last year, they are welcoming us to their theatre so that we can present our play to a live audience.” Additionally, Durango High School Troupe 1096 has lent costumes for the play. Joy continued, “This is such a tremendous help as we currently do not have any costumes, props or set pieces of our own to pull from.”
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