RSA student brings thriller to stage

By Laureen F. Guenther Times Contributor

Still Stands the House, a thriller play written by Canadian playwright Gwen Pharis Ringwood in 1938, will be performed Nov. 17 to 19 in the Rosebud’s Akokiniskway Gallery.
“The story takes place in a crumbling farmhouse during a bitter winter blizzard,” said producer Bethany Wickens.
The play is Wickens’ Final Project as a Rosebud School of the Arts (RSA) student. She’s also recently performed in Rosebud Theatre’s Skin of our Teeth and Miracle on 34th Street.
“The wind howls across the snowy Prairies,” Wickens said. “Hester, her brother Bruce, and his wife Ruth are trapped in a house full of memories. Hester wants to stay, Ruth wants to go, and Bruce is conflicted. Prosperous days seem a thing of the past.”
Wickens plays the role of Ruth. Maggie MaKenzie, another graduating student, is playing Hester, and RSA graduate John McIvor plays Bruce. Third-year student Anne Salkeld is Manning, a real estate agent.
“The weather has unsettled the characters,” Wickens said. “That tension is felt by the audience. The seclusion of the house, the raging storm and the people trapped inside their memories make for an eerie story.
“The words of the play, the sounds of howling winds, and the nod to a rickety house for the set make it feel very bare and vulnerable.”
Anna Schroeder, costume and set designer, “has really latched on to the bare bones of a house,” Wickens said, and Alixandra Cowman is creating “some delicious sound design.
“I’m really proud to be able to work on a show that was written by a Canadian woman in 1938,” Wickens said.
Yet it was the story itself that drew her to this play for her final project.
“I see myself in both Hester and Ruth,” she said. “I really resonated with both of their struggles.”
And, although the play was written nearly 80 years ago, it will be timely for us.
“We are increasing the moments of conflict by exploring what this story would look like set in 2017, which makes all of the discussion that much more weighted and unsettling,” she said.
Wickens hopes the play will reach people who have ever felt stuck, those who have ever dreamed of a better future, and other fans of Canadian theatre.
“The problems Hester, Bruce and Ruth are facing are quite universal,” she said. “I hope people are left with questions, either about the play or about their own lives.”
Still Stands the House will be performed Nov. 17 at 7 p.m., Nov. 18 at 7 p.m., and Nov. 19 at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m. It runs approximately 40 minutes. For tickets, which are $10, email wickproductions@outlook.com or see the Still Stands the House event page on Facebook.