Angry men take the stage at Peoria Players
- Details
- Published on Wednesday, 03 October 2012 12:54
- Written by Paul Gordon
Classic drama "Twelve Angry Men" opens Friday at Peoria Players Theatre; seven performances set
"Twelve Angry Men," the classic drama about a jury of 12 men deciding the fate of a young man accused of murdering his father, opens Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Peoria Players Theatre.
The play is set in the mid-1950s, when jurors were made up only of men, and tells the story of how one juror holds out on convicting the accused and tries to convince the others there is reasonable doubt. Tickets are $12 for adults and $9 for patrons 18 and under.
When community theatre groups talk about what shows to schedule, the discussion inevitably turns to "Twelve Angry Men" when dramas are brought up. Yet, it's not a show that gets produced very often in central Illinois.
Drama fans will get the chance to see the play written by Reginald Rose starting Friday, when it opens at Peoria Players Theatre on North University Street. It continues through seven performances, beginning at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and on Oct. 11, 12 and 13. Matinees will be at 2 p.m. Sunday and on Oct. 14.
Tickets are $12 for adults and $9 for students 18 and under and can be purchased by calling 688-4473 or visiting www.peoriaplayers.org.
"Twelve Angry Men" is a drama about 12 jurors who must decide the guilt or innocence, and thus the death penalty, of a young Mexican man accused of murdering his father. When the play opens, only one of the 12 jurors refuses to cast a guilty verdict. Throughout the play he remains open to being convinced of the young man's guilt while also demonstrating to the other jurors how there could be reasonable doubt about some of the evidence.
A verdict in the case must be unanimous among the 12 jurors.
Originally produced in 1954 and made into a well-known feature film starring Henry Fonda and a stellar cast of actors in 1957, the play will be presented in that period when only men served on juries, said co-directors Mike Decker and Amy Williams.
In fact, they said, there was never any thought given to bringing it up to date.
"We really didn't see a reason to do that. We wanted to go with everything the author intended and the themes of the play are still relevant today," Williams said.
The recurrent themes in "Twelve Angry Men" is prejudice. It comes out not only in how many of the jurors feel about the accused — his race and his youth — but also in how they feel about witnesses and about each other as the tense deliberations continue. "We all carry prejudices whether we want to admit it or not and we have to face those prejudices. That's what we see in this show," Williams said.
"The prejudices really start to emerge through their arguments about the accused boy's guilt or innocence. They begin to recognize their own prejudices. We think a lot of audience members may recognize themselves and realize they can change their behavior," Decker said.
The set has the appearance of the 1950s, with a large wood table for the jurors, wood chairs, drab paint, old-looking windows and even fluorescent lights dropped from the ceiling and hanging directly over the table. An old oscillating fan is on a shelf in one corner and, of course, it doesn't work. Decker designed and built the set.
Costumes appear to be from the period, as well.
The cast of 14, which includes a judge and bailiff, is mostly Peoria area theater veterans. They include Curt Rowden, who portrays juror number 8, the one who sets about trying to make the others realize there is enough reasonable doubt to acquit the accused. Bill Murphy plays the main protagonist in the cast. Other jurors are Brad Johnson, who plays the jury foreman and is in his first play, Steve Post, Tim Popp, Matt Stubbs, Alex Larson, Charles Brown, Fred Schoen, Jim Willard, Michael Wohl and Sean Howell.
Guy Sandy is the bailiff and Homer Dewey portrays the judge.
"We are very pleased with the cast we have. It's a nice mix of actors and they have come together well," Williams said.
"This is just an awesome show to be part of," added Decker. He said he and Williams decided to submit it together one night when sitting around the dressing room during an earlier play discussing what shows they would like to direct.
"This one kept coming up. So we decided to try and do it together. It has worked well. It has been a lot of fun," he said.
Originally the play had the numeral in the title, "12 Angry Men," and was written as a television play, then adapted for the stage.
It has been renamed for some productions as "Twelve Angry Jurors" or "Twelve Angry Men and Women" when brought up to date with men and women both cast as jurors.
Paul Gordon is editor of The Peorian. He can be reached at 692-7880 or editor@thepeorian.com
