Families will enjoy a heartwarming glimpse into the fantasy world of a girl dealing with her widowed father's new marriage in "Step on a Crack," an upcoming children's production at Eastern Illinois University.
The EIU theatre arts department's only public performance of the play is set for 11 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 3, in The Theatre of the Doudna Fine Arts Center. Tickets are $5 each.
“Step on a Crack” revolves around Ellie Murphy, a young girl who lives happily with her widowed father. They go bowling and eat TV dinners, and she loves to play with junk.
Life changes for Ellie when her dad remarries and she suddenly has a stepmother. To cope and escape her problems, Ellie and her imaginary friends launch into a fantasy world. They pretend they are breaking out of prison, meeting Cinderella and Snow White, and enacting Ellie's own funeral where "everyone is really sorry for all the mean things they did" to her.
Only by running away and discovering what it is really like to be alone does Ellie begin to come to terms with herself and her own need for connection with her very real parents.
EIU's production is directed by Jean K. Wolski, with costumes by Karen Eisenhour, and scenic and lighting design by David Wolski. The play was written by Suzan Zeder.
The cast includes EIU theatre majors Caitlin Bieda of Arlington Heights, Kayla Jane Blue of Gridley, Cyndi Golata of Chicago, Molly Manhart of Strasburg, Tim Tholl of Lockport and Aubrey Wiggs of Belleville.
To purchase tickets, contact Doudna Patron Services at doudnatix@eiu.edu or 217-581-3110, or visit the Doudna Box Office, which is open 11:30 a.m.-6 p.m. weekdays, as well as one hour prior to the performance.
The Doudna Fine Arts Center, a division of EIU's College of Arts and Humanities, is located one block west of Ninth Street at Garfield Avenue in Charleston. For more information, visit the website at http://www.eiu.edu/doudna.
Booth House
Eastern Illinois University
600 Lincoln Ave.
Charleston, IL 61920
217-581-7400
jdreinhart@eiu.edu