A young woman named Mia, played by sophomore Nicki Palmer, is dumbfounded to find she is pregnant even though she hasn’t sex for the past year. Before she knows it, three men are knocking at her door claiming to be the father.
This sets the stage for the brilliantly witty comedy, “Immaculate,” performed through the weekend of March 22 in the Blackbox Theater of College of Arts and Sciences 2.
[/media-credit]The play, directed by senior Kristen Banaszak and sponsored by Drama Department Senior Project, centers around the three potential fathers: one man is her ex-boyfriend, Michael, played by junior Joe Skaleski. The other two are Gabriel the archangel, played by sophomore Jacob Nadeau, and Lucifer the fallen angel, played by junior Michael Bobenhausen. Both Gabriel and Lucifer claim the pregnancy was immaculate while Mia stresses over ideas of motherhood.
“I was laughing so hard throughout the entire play,” said sophomore Caroline Ciorciari. “All of the actors were very well-suited for their roles. They did a great job.”
Other cast members include sophomore Melissa Peters and sophomore Zack Glassman.
The play was originally written by Oliver Lansley in 2006 and was first performed by Les Enfants Terribles Theatre Company in Scotland.
The show began with a phone call amid Mia taking her pregnancy test. She yells frustrated, “F*** off!”, immediately earning roars of laughter from the crowd.
The entire play continued to push the envelope with its risqué dialogue and portrayal of a variety of controversial subjects such as religion and unwanted pregnancy. During one scene, Mia considered throwing herself down a flight of stairs to abort her unborn child, who may have been the son of God.
“The fact that at some points it was such a farcical comedy, you couldn’t take it too seriously, even with all of the controversial topics it presented,” said Jacob Nadeau, who played Gabriel.
The play ends with the sound of one baby crying, and a few seconds later, the sound of another child. But whether or not the child, or children, is the son of God or the spawn of Lucifer was left for the audience to decide.
Even though the conclusion of Mia’s pregnancy remains a mystery, the play was well-strung together, unique and Americanized to better fit the target audience; a great way to find entertainment on a Friday or Saturday night without spending a dime.
