A new play composed entirely by students.

From January 17 to 19 at the Henry Woolf Theatre, USask students performed Eve & Adam, a play written by Maxwell Folk. This production was unique for the drama program as it was completely organized by students with only occasional guidance from the USask drama faculty. In contrast, most productions at Greystone theatre are organized almost entirely by faculty, with students either on stage, working behind the scenes on lights and sound, stage managing, or assistant directing. 

Eve & Adam breathes life into LGBTQ2S+ theatre, with strong, meaningful characters whose stories don’t revolve solely around trauma. The characters are complex people who have complex issues, just as most people do. Eve & Adam is a play which takes the well-known love triangle trope and transforms it into a lesbian love story.

Eve, played by Jayden Nelson, is the lesbian main character struggling to find a job so she can pay rent to her roommate Adam, played by Scott Eaton. Adam is a gay orthodontic resident, who is often engaged with various love interests, played by Skylar Melby. One day while Eve is in the apartment, a delivery needs to be signed for and that’s when she meets a delivery girl named Artemis, played by Ben Woods. Eve instantly falls for her but doesn’t have the courage to ask her out. However, during their second meeting, Artemis asks Eve out, and Eve agrees to go on a date. 

Eve’s best friend Belle, played by Nicole Gillis, is dealing with relationship problems. She seeks support from Eve after finding out her boyfriend has been flirting with other people at work. Belle, who is bisexual, clearly has feelings for Eve but doesn’t express it at first, either because she’s freshly out of a relationship or because Eve is interested in someone else. Regardless, a love triangle unfolds, captivating the audience into wondering: Who will Eve choose? Her best friend Belle, or Artemis, the delivery girl?

This play is beautifully written, capturing the audience’s hearts in a relatable way. Historically, LGBTQ2S+ relationships have been underrepresented in plays and written stories, and even when they are portrayed, it is often doomed in some way or based on some kind of trauma. To see something as simple as a love triangle be depicted on stage, something many people in the LGBTQ2S+ community experience, is quite rare in LGBTQ2S+ theatre and media in general. 

On top of that, the students who worked in the crew did an excellent job of creating the world for the characters. The director, Aiden Maddison, clearly went above and beyond to bring this play to life for the audience and put his own perspective into all aspects of the play. 

This production was simultaneously funny, entertaining and heart-wrenching at times which can often be extremely difficult to do in theatre, as guiding an audience to feel all of these emotions through storytelling and acting alone is not an easy feat. Maddison also brought on an Intimacy Coordinator, Drew Mantyka, to work with the actors. This is really important to do when actors are simulating intimate acts in a play, to ensure comfort and consent during rehearsal and provide a safe space for the actors. 

The set, costumes, and props, designed by Kelsey Jenzen, suited the comfortable and homey setting they were going for with the apartment look. It was simple, with a couch and a throw blanket, side tables, and a rug, but it gave the audience the feeling of walking into the home of a close friend. 

The costumes suited the characters’ personalities as well, with Skyler Melby, who played Adam’s love interests throughout the play, changing into different outfits to reflect the personalities of his characters. Patrick Lomas worked on lights and sound, setting the mood for many of the intense and emotional scenes and signaling the passage of time. 

Overall, Eve & Adam is a beautiful show that I would definitely see again. It is no surprise that it was extended for a third night due to popular demand, even though it was originally just meant to be a two-night show. Folk and all of the students who worked tirelessly to put together this production did an excellent job and deserve recognition for their talents and efforts.

 Every member of the team brought their very best to the table and it shows. I highly recommend attending future productions that will be put on later this year by the program if you didn’t get the chance to see this one. Brainstorm is coming up from February 12 to 15, featuring the work of first and second-year students , and Mother’s Daughter by Kate Hennig, will be performed from March 20 to 29.