Elizabethtown College Theatre announces auditions and crew call for the program’s last scheduled play, Silent Sky by Lauren Gunderson, on Sunday, February 16 and Monday, February 17 at 7:30 p.m. in Tempest Theatre.
Silent Sky tells the story of Henrietta Leavitt, who started as a poorly paid “computer” for the men running the Harvard Astronomical Laboratory in the first decade of the 1900s, and through studying only photos of the sky — women weren’t trusted with telescopes at Harvard — discovered the connection between a star’s brightness, its rotational period, and its distance from Earth. That knowledge provided astronomers with the first “standard candle” with which to measure the distance to faraway galaxies. Leavitt’s story explores a woman’s place in society during a time of immense scientific discoveries, when women’s ideas were dismissed until men claimed credit for them. Social progress, like scientific progress, can be hard to see when one is trapped among earthly complications; Henrietta Leavitt and her female peers believe in both, and their dedication changed the way we understand both the heavens and Earth.
The cast requires four women and one man. Auditionees need not prepare any memorized material for the audition but are encouraged to read the play, which is on reserve in High Library, before auditioning.
Those interested in auditioning should come to the theatre callboard outside the theatre offices, BSC 105 – 111, to sign up for an hour-long slot during one of the audition evenings. Callbacks will be held on Tuesday, February 18, at a time to be announced.
Performances are scheduled for April 16, 17, 18, 23, and 24 at 8 p.m. and April 26 at 2 p.m.
For more information, contact Prof. Michael Swanson, director or call (717) 361-1160.