By BETHANY SHERROW
Features Editor
(WARRENSBURG, Mo., digitalBURG) — UCM’s Department of Theatre and Dance will begin their spring performances with a Studio Theatre Series performance featuring three one-act plays.

The three one-acts are all student-directed. Sarah Clifton, senior theater major with a concentration in technical theater, costumes and makeup, will direct the first.

Before UCM theater students graduate, Clifton said it’s a requirement for them to technical direct and direct a show. She said she’s directing a show written by Arlene Hutton, called “I Dream Before I Take the Stand,” that brings awareness to the idea of victim-blaming within our society.

“It’s basically about a woman who is walking through the park and she’s assaulted and what happens after that,” Clifton said.

The three shows are said to be somewhat connected.

“I would say they’re independent but I would say there’s a thread of empowerment in each, especially for women,” Clifton said.

Neil Bearden, senior technical theater major, is directing the second one-act show called, “A Masque of Reason,” a play by Robert Frost. Bearden said the shows tackle some relevant issues such as the idea of feminism.

In addition to being thought-provoking and entertaining, Bearden said that people should come see the one-acts because they are convenient.

“It’s only going to be about an hour and a half of your time, and it’s only a dollar,” he said.

Clifton said everyone should come see the show because it will make the audience laugh as well as think, but also because the BlackBox Theatre isn intimate space that offers a unique experience for viewers.

“You get to face the actors, and the audience surrounds the actors, so you get to really feel like you are a part of the show,” she said.

The one-act plays will be begin at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 4; Friday, Feb. 5; and Saturday, Feb. 6 in the BlackBox Theatre, located in Nickerson Hall.