Fall 2025 Studio Productions

Northampton, MA – The Smith College Department of Theatre presents an evening of student directed one-act plays on December 5 and 6 at 7:30 p.m. in Hallie Flanagan Studio Theatre in Mendenhall Center for the Performing Arts. The 2025 Fall Studio Productions include The Open Meeting by A.R. Gurney, directed by Tabitha Reid ‘27 and Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again. by Alice Birch, directed by Mateenah Adeleke ‘26. Both offer bold critiques of Western society. Tickets are free at smitharts.ludus.com.

The Open Meeting by A. R. Gurney presents a typical public meeting that soon degenerates into a mystery of betrayed identity and political scandal. The Smith College production examines a failing American democracy, trapped in bureaucratic paralysis and constrained by both familial cycles and masculine ego. “This play is a testament to the democratic process, both grounded in absurdist tradition and deeply, deeply reliant on the audience's willingness to acknowledge their own role in this open meeting,” says director Tabitha Reid ’27.

The Open Meeting was first performed at a coffeehouse in Boston’s South End in 1968. Gurney was influenced by Absurdist theatre and the political upheaval of the time. The play is a hilarious send up of the bureaucratic process that takes some unexpected twists and turns. A.R. Gurney (1930–2017) would go on to become a winner of the Drama Desk Award for Best Play four times. He is known for The Dining Room (1982), Sweet Sue (1986/7), The Cocktail Hour (1988), and for his Pulitzer Prize nominated play Love Letters (1988). Gurney’s plays often explored the theme of a declining white upper-class in contemporary America.

In Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again. Alice Birch examines the language, behavior, and forces that shape women in the 21st century through a series of arresting vignettes and a collection of nameless characters. Through skillful blurring between actor and character, the play asks: what’s stopping us from doing something truly radical to change restrictive social norms? Written in response to the provocation that well-behaved women seldom make history, the play is an assault on the language that has fueled violence against women throughout history. “Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again. speaks to every moment in time because the forces it confronts (patriarchy, capitalism, and the systems that uphold them) are enduring,“ explains director, Mateenah Adeleke ’26. ”Yet, in our current climate, where there’s a visible resurgence of conservatism and traditionalism, the play’s defiance of the status quo feels especially urgent. It asks us to question, to unlearn, and to resist complacency.”

British playwright and screenwriter Alice Birch was commissioned to craft this story for the Royal Shakespeare Company in 2014. Slate called it “Scalding... A puckish, yet deadly serious meditation on how language molds our experience of sex and gender.” In addition to her theatre work, Birch has written for hit modern television series such as Hulu’s Normal People and HBO’s Succession, with a keen understanding of our current times.

Audiences should note that Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again. has sexual content and mature language. Full details are available by contacting boxoffice@smith.edu. Tickets are free, reservations are encouraged at smitharts.ludus.com.