Becky Meissen and Ebby Barber in "She Kills Monsters" at St. Ambrose University -- November 12 through 21.
Friday, November 12, through Sunday, November 21
St. Ambrose University's Galvin Fine Arts Center, 2101 North Gaines Street, Davenport IA
Described by the Chicago Tribune as “clever, funny, moving, lively, and geeky,” and filled with what Time Out Chicago called “deliciously dorky references to the early days of the Internet,” the Dungeons & Dragons-fueled comedy-drama-action-adventure She Kills Monsters serves as the first mainstage production in St. Ambrose University's 2021-22 season, its November 12 through 21 run guaranteed, according to the New York Times, to “slash and shapeshift its way into your heart.”
Written by award-winning playwright Qui Nguyen, She Kills Monsters tells the story of Agnes Evans, a young woman grieving for her deceased sister. The Evans siblings never were especially close, but after Tilly’s death, Agnes discovers a notebook containing a game scenario that her sister created. Tilly, it turns out, was a well-known and widely respected Dungeons & Dragons player passionate about online fantasy gaming, and in order to unlock more secrets about her mysterious young sibling, Agnes recruits sardonic “dungeon master” to help her understand and grieve Tilly. Chock-full of supermodel elves, dominatrix warrior women, and nasty ogres, She Kills Monsters is also an unexpectedly sweet tale of friendship, loss, and acceptance that the New York Times labeled a “deceptively breezy and rather ingenious comedy” that's “kind of invigorating and kind of remarkable.”
Directing She Kills Monsters for St. Ambrose – and, alongside Aaron Hook, designing the show's many large-scale puppets – is associate professor and department chair Daniel Rairdin-Hale, whose previous presentations for the university include The Little Prince, Noises Off, and a recent shadow-puppet rendition of Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet. Agnes is portrayed by K Hampton and Tilly by Becky Meissen, both students former castmates in St. Ambrose's springtime production of Admissions, with the rest of the ensemble composed of Ebby Barber, Beckett Conwell, Drew Dowda, Andres Garcia, Ruby Jasa, Sam Lange, Jayden Lebron, Megan Rohn, Caroline Sieren, Elena Vallejo, Nyssa Wagner, and Zachary Weih. And with Aaron Hook also serving as technical director and lighting designer, additional members of She Kills Monsters' creative team include stage manager Ellis Allbaugh, assistant stage manager Courtney Cook, scenic designer Kris Eitrheim, costume designer Andrea Gross (a visiting artist from Minnesota's Twin Cities), costume technician Cory Johnson, and sound designers Michael Campbell and Sarah Smith.
She Kills Monsters will be staged in St. Ambrose University's Galvin Fine Arts Center November 21 through 21, with performances on Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m. General admission is $15, and more information and tickets are available by calling (563)333-6251 and visiting SAU.edu/galvin.
