UConn students question cancellation of CRT show
Dec. 16—STORRS — University of Connecticut theater students are expressing outrage over their play's cancellation to the public, prompting them to question the university's reasoning.
Connecticut Repertory Theater's " Food for the Gods" was slated to open Dec. 3, with an already sold- out run.
At the beginning of the production's opening week, a student from the cast tested positive for COVID-19.
To ensure safety for the cast and crew, the company decided to take a pause for the scheduled dress rehearsal and preview on Dec. 1-2, respectively, and to postpone opening night on Dec. 3 to ensure that the remainder of the cast tested negative throughout the incubation period.
As the remainder of the cast tested negative for the week, on opening night, the company resumed with a refresher rehearsal without an audience.
Nehprii Amenii, the director of the show, claims she was told the production could proceed with an audience on the following day, as long as social distancing protocols could be implemented as a part of the show.
The already- approved, socially distanced ground plans were presented to illustrate COVID- 19 safety guidelines were followed and already built into the design
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UConn theater students question cancellation of CRT production
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of the play, according to the production.
But, shortly after that, Amenii was given the condition the show would only be granted an audience if all patrons were required to go immediately from the lobby directly to house seating.
This new condition would mean prohibiting the entire second act of the play from being seen by the audience.
It was a condition to which Amenii could not agree.
" A production that took seven months to design and weeks to physically install — with lighting instruments, speaker placements and scenic builds — cannot simply be redesigned within hours on opening night," she stated in a press release.
" In addition to that, the terms presented to me, to alter the play, would have been in direct violation to the script that was licensed."
The section of the play audience members would have been prevented from viewing contained the stories of murdered Black men and a listing of the names from the playwright of Black people in the United States executed without trial, by police, security guards and the public.
After Amenii declined the condition to alter the script, Anne D'Alleva, dean of the UConn School of Fine Arts, claimed a new directive from the university's Student Health and Wellness (SHaW).
" They are not satisfied that contact tracing has had sufficient time to operate," D'Alleva said in a statement.
" Therefore, we are not permitted to enable the ' Food for the Gods' company to assemble today. There is no room for us to negotiate this directive, as medical advice."
After D'Alleva's directive was issued, the theater was locked and Amenii and the actors were not permitted to gather.
The following day, the students received notice from D'Alleva on behalf of SHaW.
"(In) efforts to keep one another safe ... all scheduled performances are canceled," she said.
No contingency plans for the show were offered.
The students involved with the show and the UConn Dramatic Arts Department wrote letters in protest and are questioning what the real reasons are behind the soldout run of the play being suddenly shut down.
" This decision to cancel is not about COVID," wrote one student as documented in a press release.
Students of the production also questioned why it is safe for them to gather for in- person classes, but unsafe to gather to perform this show.
They also questioned why thousands are permitted to attend the school's basketball games, but an audience of 24 was not allowed to attend their production.
One student even created a petition on change. org demanding fair treatment.
In response to students' advocacy, the university granted the production permission to resume for its last two days of the intended run.
However, these performances were only open to UConn faculty, staff and students, with no tickets available for sale.
UConn spokesperson Stephanie Reitz confirmed both the university and the School of Fine Arts support the "Food for the Gods" performance and content.
" The cancellations were directly tied to health and safety precautions and had no connection to the performance's content," she said.
The cancellations were directly tied to health and safety precautions and had no connection to the performance's content.
UConn spokesperson Stephanie Reitz
