The College of Engineering Does Amateur Radical Theatre is a group of primarily engineering students out to prove the College of Engineering is a creative place, not just numbers, technology and science.
Founded in 2007, the group consists of roughly 50 members. While mainly a theatre performance group, the CDA does also offer a social outlet to its members.
“We have get-togethers and camping trips a lot and we just recently put together some intramural teams,” Abby Campbell, communications co-chair for the group, said.
Campbell, a junior majoring in psychology, said the group does not do many improv shows, but is known to start impromptu sessions at events such as Get on Board Day this past fall.
Beginning this Friday, the CDA will be performing “All the Great Books,” a comedy. Jonathan Whitesell, the president of CDA, said he, along with his cast and crew, have been working on the production for months.
“Before we can even start rehearsing, we have to get the show idea and then procure the rights and scripts,” Whitesell said. “That costs money and time. Once we have a script and a cast list, we immediately start casting with auditions and evaluations.”
The cast then spends a month or longer in multiple rehearsals a week – usually three or four. Whitesell said the play is a full-length production with only three actors, and a very time and energy-intensive show.
“The two weeks before the show is when everything really fully comes together and then we perform three shows with four crew members backstage facilitating costume changes and props,” Whitesell said.
Whitesell said the audience can expect a lot of laughter, a little bit of danger and even some participation.
“I don’t think that this show will bring to the stage anything that nobody has ever seen before, but ‘COE does ART’ puts the magic of theatre in the hands of engineers and other science, mathematics, and overall non-theatre students, Whitesell said. “And I’d like to think that we can and do put on just as good of a show. No matter how many times CDA does that, it will always be something special.”
CDA will perform “All the Great Books” Friday at 7 p.m. and Saturday at 2 and 7 p.m. Tickets are $5 in the Ferguson Center in advance and $7 at the door.
