CEDAR CITY — The Department of Theatre Arts and Dance at Southern Utah University is warming this fall season with the musical “The Spitfire Grill.”
Performances will be held in the Randall L. Jones Theatre on Nov. 4, 5, 7 and 11 at 7:30 p.m. with matinee performances on Nov. 5 and 12 at 2 p.m.
“The Spitfire Grill” musical is the story of a town that has lost its purpose and hope after losing its hero during the Vietnam War. Percy, a 21-year-old ex-prisoner looking for a new start on life, arrives to the town of Gilead. An idea to run a raffle to sell the Spitfire Grill offers the people of the town and grill a chance for a new life.
“What a pleasure it has been to spend this fall in Gilead and the Spitfire, both shells of their glory days when they offered places of hope and belonging for the people who inhabit them,” Melinda Vaughn, director and assistant professor of theater, said. “We begin our story in stark winter: the perfect setting for a journey to something else. To connection, to redemption, or belonging. Perhaps, for the people of Gilead, a journey back to themselves. To each other. To home.”
Trent Dahlin, a junior from Cedar City, is playing Sheriff Joe Sutter.
“My biggest challenge is playing a character with dialogue that is so grounded, realistic and normal on the outside while still infusing it with the high-stakes energy that is boiling under his thick skin,” Dahlin said.
“One of my favorite parts about working on this production is developing the relationships,” said Jordyn Cardwell, who is performing the role of Perchance (Percy) Talbot.
Cardwell, a senior candidate for Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre, said her hope is that “the audience leaves the show with their own feeling of redemption.”
“I believe that your past does not define who you are and that is exactly what this show demonstrates. Stephen Chbosky has it right in “The Perks of Being a Wallflower,” that “We accept the love we think we deserve.” “The Spitfire Grill” is about separating what we think we deserve, and what we truly deserve,” she said.
Feel the strength and warmth of community as you watch the heartwarming musical “The Spitfire Grill.” For more information, visit www.suu.edu/pva/ta.
Event details
- What: “The Spitfire Grill.”
- Where: SUU Randall L. Jones Theatre, 300 W. Center Street, Cedar City.
- When: Nov. 4, 5, 7 and 11 at 7:30 p.m.; Nov. 5 and 12 at 2 p.m.
- Cost: $15 adults; $12 alumni; $7 youth; SUU students, faculty, staff are free.
- Tickets available at the SUU Ticket Office, (435) 586-7872, Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.; in person at the Centrum Ticket Office; or at suu.edu/pva.
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