“Almost, Maine” – the theatre department’s first theatrical production of the fall season – was comprised of nine unrelated vignettes about relationships, love and heartbreak.

The production ran from Oct. 23 to Nov. 3. As the most frequently produced performance worldwide, it has been run around 2,000 times in 11 different languages.

The Playwrights’ Theatre in Shasta Hall was transformed into a winter wonderland for the duration of the show. To represent the chilly season of the aurora borealis – also known as Northern Lights – walls in the theatre were lined with blue wallpaper covered in snowflakes and trees with lights realistically represented what the scenery would look like.

The close proximity of the audience to the stage at the Playwrights’ Theatre added an intimate feel to the production and allowed the audience to peek into the lives of the characters.

The cast of six members played at least three roles per person with a total of 19 characters portrayed in the production.

Junior theatre major Jacob Garcia, 21, has been acting for seven years and played four roles in the production. He said that the actors had to make the separate lives and relationships of these characters apparent to the audience.

“We all play at least three characters so we just have to make the distinction as clear as we can,” Garcia said. “It was tricky.”

Natalie Jones, a 22-year-old theater major, said developing close, offstage relationships with her castmates helped to create more believable onstage relationships with her fellow actors.

“We’re a group of six really close, goofy people and hopefully that energy translated onstage as well,” Jones said.

There were many unexpected twists and turns in this comical production by playwright John Cariani. Each scene had a life of its own and employed clever elements.

“Almost, Maine” director Michelle Felten received many compliments about the show.

“People stop by my office everyday and say they loved the show and it was one of their favorites in a long time,” Felten said. “We had a respondent from The Kennedy American College Theatre Festival come and he said it was the best production of this play possible.”

Felten started her career as a professional actress at 14 years old and performed two national off-Broadway tours. She has been directing at Sac State for six years and has been a professor for seven years.

“Of all the shows I’ve done here, this has been one of my favorites,” Felten said.

The actors agreed being members in the cast was a challenging but rewarding experience.

“It’s definitely been hard but it was a lot of fun; especially when you’re with a talented group of people,” said junior and theater major, 21,Tiffanie Mack.“Six people who were just really ready to put on an awesome show is a great thing.”

Briana Swain can be reached at [email protected]