Students from Illinois State University’s School of Theatre and Dance will stage three performances of Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again. as part of the 26th annual WGSS Symposium. There will be two performances, at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m., on Saturday, April 29. There will be a third performance Sunday, April 30, at 2 p.m. All performances will be in Milner Library 118.
Written by British playwright Alice Birch and debuting in June 2014, Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again. is an experimental play that seeks to critique society’s expectations of women by “revolutionizing” language, work, the body, and the world. The performance is marketed as one that “does not behave.”
Alysa Raelyn, the director of Illinois State’s production of Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again., states that she discovered this work while researching women and gender nonconforming playwrights. “For me, the topic of women’s issues has always been on the forefront of my mind,” Raelyn explained, “and the way this play tackles it is so interesting and so to the point…it doesn’t try to mask anything.”
Raelyn further highlights her interest in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, as well as the state of the current political climate to address the question “why this play now?” “Abortion being overturned, anti-trans laws being passed…” she notes, “it is such a pressing issue in our society right now.”
Raelyn, along with the cast and crew of Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again. hope “that people will sit on this play, even for a month afterwards, just come back to it every once in a while.” She continues, “[The audience] can open these conversations … that allow for an education to happen” regarding privilege and where each individual may fall in the system.
Alysa Raelyn is a senior theatre studies major and women’s, gender, and sexuality studies minor at Illinois State University. Each performance of Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again. will feature a 30-minute talk-back with the cast after the show.
