The Sacramento State theater season may be over, but students who love acting and directing are pursuing their passions with the annual student-directed One Act Festival.

Last week’s one act play, written and directed by senior theatre major Tygar Hicks was titled, “Delight and I,” about a young girl going from California to the South. Hicks said she was inspired by her family’s southern roots.

“I love the romanticism of the South,” Hicks said. “I think it is sweet and endearing.”

Hicks is no stranger to play writing. When she was in high school, she wrote a one act play that was performed at the Lenaea Festival in Sacramento, a high school theater festival where students from all over the area come to perform in a variety of acting competitions.

Hicks said she wrote the play to keep her entertained on a long car ride.

“I had a 30-hour drive from Arkansas to Sacramento and I wrote it in my head to entertain myself,” Hicks said.

She created three central characters – a daughter, mother, and grandmother who suffers from Alzheimer’s disease.

“There are several important roles, but it is an ensemble cast because almost everyone is essential to the plot,” Hicks said.

The play is interesting not only because of what it is about, but also because of how the story is told. The story is not narrated by the story’s main character; Hicks compared the telling of her play to Shakespeare’s “Othello.”

“It’s Othello’s story, but it is presented by Iago. ‘Delight and I’ is the story of Old Rose, but it is being presented by Jenna, the mother,” Hicks said.

For Hicks, the process of putting the One Act Festival together seems long in retrospect, but has gone by quickly.

“Auditions happened in February and then we cast the show; that took about three days. We didn’t start rehearsing until late March and, even then, we (were) only allow(ed) 50 hours of rehearsal time; we have been working on it for about two and a half months,” Hicks said.

This has been Hick’s first experience directing. She said she is willing to direct again.

“I feel that I am an actor; that is what I want to pursue. But I would also like to direct occasionally if a piece speaks to me,” Hicks said.

Hicks felt that directing, in comparison to acting, requires a lot more time and effort. She said it is essential that you absolutely love the project you are directing.

“As a director, you have to understand all the characters…you have to understand how your actors will discover the characters they are playing. You also have to think about the set and costumes; it is a great challenge,” Hicks said.

Cierra Chitwood, senior theatre major, played the part of young Rose. She said she absolutely loved the script Hicks wrote.

“She should enter it (in) some festival. Every day after rehearsal, I tell her how much I love the script. It is comparable to ‘The Notebook.’ It works so well; she is brilliant,” Chitwood said.

Chitwood has always enjoyed the One Act Festival and, when she heard that Hicks was directing, decided to be a part of it. She said she enjoys the concept of the show as well, but found that it could be difficult at times in dealing with a show with time-period changes.

“It’s so important to make sure that things stay within the time period of the show,” Chitwood said. “It flashes back from 1955 to the 1990s when old Rose is reminiscing about her younger years.”

While all directors are different, Chitwood said she liked working with a director who was open to actor input, but was still determined to keep her vision.

“It has been a pretty professional process; she is open to our ideas and incorporating them if they work. I completely trust Tygar’s thoughts and vision,” Chitwood said.

Chitwood hopes that the play be well-received.

“I just really hope every one comes and sees this play because it is so much more than any old play that was picked up off the shelf,” she said.

Kelda Jordan, theatre graduate student, is directing for the first time in this year’s One Act Festival. She has selected a play about a murder investigation titled “Trifles,” written by Susan Glasll.

“It is about an investigation of a murder and trying to find a motive for that murder. John Wright was killed and they suspect his wife Mrs. Wright,” Jordan said. “Mr. and Mrs. Wright are only spoken about and they do not actually appear on stage.”

Even though the show is set in the early 1900s, Jordan felt like this show should be done now because it is so relatable to things that are still going on today.

“I thought it would be interesting to do this play now because it deals with issues between men and women that are dealt with to this day,” Jordan said.

Jordan has enjoyed her first experience with directing.

“I have had a lot of fun with it and I was lucky; I got a really good cast and we’ve been working really hard. Overall, the experience has been really good,” Jordan said.

Jordan does not want to pursue directing professionally, but said she would not mind doing it at a community theater level.

“I want to go into teaching; that is my main focus, but I wouldn’t mind directing again,” Jordan said.

Senior theatre major Ryan Donaldson is playing the part of Hale, the local farmer who discovers that his friend’s wife has murdered her husband.

“It is a drama and a character-driven show,” Donaldson said.

Donaldson feels that the One Act Festival is a great way for actors of a variety of acting levels to come together and enjoy theater.

“We have a lot of people in the one acts who are not theater majors or they are minors,” Donaldson said.

The One Act Festival is a little more of a relaxed process than other auditions, Donaldson said.

“It is an easier audition and rehearsal process; it does not seem like it is so in-your-face like the main stage shows are,” he said.

Donaldson warns that, although these may be student-run performances, people should not underestimate the level of professionalism.

“Even though it is student-directed, the whole process is still professional,” Donaldson said. ” You show up, you do your work, you still have to do everything the exact same as if anyone else (were) directing the show.”

Although Donaldson is graduating in the fall, he would love to be a part of the One Act Festival again if he were able to.

David Borad, senior theatre major, is directing “Murder Me Once” by John Rustan and Frank Semerano. This genre of play is based on film noir, a genre of movies characterized by low-key lighting, an urban setting and corrupt characters. “It is a very affectionate parody of a genre that I love, film noir. Film Noir can be seen in movies like ‘The Maltese Falcon,’ ‘The Postman Always Rings Twice’, and ‘Sunset Boulevard,'” Borad said.

This is Borad’s second time directing but his first directorial experience at Sac State.

“It has been an eye-opening process and has been very intense. We (have) a lot of good actors auditioning and the amount of work my cast has put in has been tremendous,” Borad said.

Borad learned that it is not always easy working with your peers.

“It’s a challenge; it’s been really good but I have learned I have to step away from being a friend and step into being a leader and authority figure,” he said.

Borad is hopeful that people will come to see the show.

“I am excited to find out if people think the play is as funny as I think it is.”

Ciara Deiters, junior theatre major, is playing the role of Myra Sontaine, the love interest in “Murder Me Once.” Deiters is very excited about the show.

“This is over-the-top soap opera-like play. My character is funny and sexy at the same time; a classic drama queen. Myra Sontaine, is the grieving widow and a stepmother. She is like the femme fatale bombshell.”

Deiters is really excited for this outlandish farcical comedy.

“It’s like a detective story where the detective is narrating as the action happens; it’s a lot like ‘Who Framed Roger Rabbit?’ where what the detective is thinking in his head is being said out loud to the audience,” she said.

Deiters believes that the entire One Act Festival is very positive, not only for the theatre department but for students too.

“I think that it’s a great opportunity to work with students directing and a small show like the one acts could be a really big outlet for actors that do not always appear in the main stage shows; this gives them a chance to show what they can do,” she said.

Deiters has enjoyed being able to work with Borad.

“David seems to have figured out how to control us, but still being able to be our friend. He knows what he wants and he has a good way of getting what he wants from us and he is still open to our opinions.”

The One Act Festival will close at the end of this week. “Murder Me Once” can be seen at 6 p.m. today, Thursday and Friday. “Trifles” follows at 7 p.m. Both shows are in The Studio Theatre on campus located behind the Saigon Bay Express in the Library Quad.

Cozette Roberts can be reached at [email protected]