February 17, 2010
How I Learned to Drive. Download image.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Department of Theatre will present Paula Vogel's "How I Learned to Drive," 7:30 p.m. March 3-6 and March 10-12 and at 2 p.m. Saturday, March 13 in the Alys Stephens Center Odess Theatre, 1200 10th Ave. South. Tickets are $12; $6 for students; $10 for UAB employees and senior citizens. For tickets, call 205-975-2787. Visit the UAB Department of Theatre online at http://theatre.hum.uab.edu/.
UAB senior Dustin Cañez of Northport will direct the play; Cañez is only the second student to direct a Theatre UAB main stage play at the Alys Stephens Center. In 2009 Cañez won the regional competition for the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival (KCACTF) Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers (SSDC) Student Directing Fellowship Award. Cañez then competed at the national festival this past spring at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. Cañez is the second UAB student to win honors for directing at KCACTF; students who win the student directing competition are invited to direct on the UAB main stage season.
"How I Learned to Drive" is a wildly funny, surprising and devastating tale of survival as seen through the lens of a troubling relationship between a young girl and an older man. The story of a woman who learns the rules of the road and life from behind the wheel, it was the winner of the 1998 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.
"Sometimes to tell a secret, you first have to teach a lesson," begins the character, Li'l Bit, who tells the story of the strained relationship between herself and her aunt's husband, Uncle Peck. Predominately set in rural Maryland in the '60s and '70s, Vogel's "Drive" follows Li'l Bit from her adolescence, through her teenage years, into college, and beyond. The metaphor of driving is used to address the issues of pedophilia, incest and misogyny, Cañez said. "The play is unique in that it doesn't ask us to pass judgment on any of the characters," he said. "Vogel presents her characters as multi-faceted, intriguing people attempting to reconcile their needs and desires."
To aid in the storytelling the show uses projections and re-imagines a Greek chorus. In traditional Greek theater the chorus consisted of many actors who would comment on the action of the play, often stating the voice of the people; here the chorus is used by Vogel to fill the roles of family members, friends and acquaintances. The cast includes Jessica Walston of Hoover as L'il Bit, Joshua Butler of Leeds as Uncle Peck, and Brittney Williams of Pratt City, Atom Bennett of Decatur and Trista Baker of Corner as members of the Greek chorus.
About the UAB Department of Theatre
The UAB Department of Theatre has won the highest honors awarded to university theaters, including best in region from the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival (KCACTF). In 2008, UAB's production of "In the Blood" was one of three shows chosen by KCACTF from 300 in consideration nationwide. Faculty members in the department continue to work professionally in addition to teaching. UAB Theatre performances are presented at the Alys Stephens Center, UAB's own world-class performing arts center. This year the department will celebrate its 40th anniversary.