Each year, Tisch New Theater produces one Mainstage production. One year the group chose a British comedy, the next a musical; this year, though, the group wanted to produce a student's original work. They weren't sure what to expect, but sophomore producer Alex Fofonoff said the group struck gold with sophomore writer/director Rachel Music's "Last Exit No Toll."
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"We just didn't think a submission would blow us away the way this one did," Fofonoff said.
Being a student theater artist isn't without its challenges. Working in a non-NYU theater, the production was only allowed the space for a short period of time. While the stagehands worked on the sets, the rehearsals continued.
Although there were nine girls on stage, the first thing Music said after rehearsals was, "This is not a feminist play." She said she wanted to create characters who were universal figures, not just women with "female" problems.
It was exactly this kind of strong, distinct voice that attracted Fofonoff and the rest of the Tisch New Theatre team to this production. However, "Last Exit No Toll," like so many student productions, hit many roadblocks.
"Scheduling has been a major issue for us," Music said. "We had to do a rehearsal last week from 11 p.m. until 1 in the morning." Yet, at Tuesday's dress rehearsal the production seemed to be tight and well-rehearsed.
Music said she revised the play line by line to fit each actress' style.
"I think a lot of the actresses were surprised by how many liberties I let them take," she said. "They have often challenged me and proven me wrong."
Music promised the production will offer a wide range of emotions.
"It's a show about trauma in its different forms: emotional, physical and romantic," she said. "It's also about the different ways that these women accept it, isolated in this tiny room with each other. We have fight scenes, but then there are scenes that will make people cry."
"Last Exit No Toll" performs at the Kraine Theater (85 E. 4th St.) from Wednesday, April 27, to Saturday, April 30, at 8 p.m. with an additional p.m. matinee on Saturday. Tickets are $7 for NYU students. More information and tickets can be found at tischnewtheater.com.
