Participants in Black Tent Theatre’s “˜Hour of the Wolf’ bring emotionally disturbing play to life

May 28, 2012- Barons and demons and castles, oh my! Founded this spring quarter, the student-run Black Tent Theatre Company is staging a performance of an experimental two-act play, “Hour of the Wolf,” based on the movie by Swedish filmmaker Ernst Ingmar Bergman. It’s about a Swedish painter, Johan, who lives on a remote island with his wife. In the story, Johan experiences hallucinations of aristocratic ghosts in a medieval castle, which take a tremendous and fateful toll upon his psyche. Second-year theater student Casey Holmberg, the director of the play, discusses his vision for the project, his directorial techniques in working with actors and his musical inspiration for one of the most haunting scenes in the play. Committing to its “experimental” vibe, the “Hour of the Wolf” performance will take place in a parking lot of the Weyburn Terrace apartments off Gayley Avenue in Westwood Thursday through Saturday.

Second-year mathematics students Jacob Flatto is the only non-theater student in the Black Tent Theatre Company. Though he quit pursuing theater as his major focus of study, he still enjoys acting on the side, which is why he auditioned for “Hour of the Wolf.” Flatto plays the supporting role of Baron Von Merkens, a figment of Johan’s imagination. Though he has few lines in the play, Baron Von Merkens exercises mystical power over Johan by luring him into his castle. Flatto discusses the challenges he faces as an actor with emotionally connecting to the characters he works on.

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