Original theatrical production will explore issues surrounding nuclear power
A new, original theatrical production entitled "Nuclear Power Play" will explore the personal and public politics of nuclear power. Uniquely developed by a team of experts in science and technology working alongside theatre arts practitioners, the play will debut on Wednesday, Nov. 7 at 7:30 p.m. in the Haymarket Theatre at the Squires Student Center on the Virginia Tech campus.
The play will also be performed on Thursday, Nov. 8 (same time and place) with workshop performances in Room F of the Graduate Life Center at Donaldson Brown on Friday, Nov. 9 (7:30 p.m.) and Sunday, Nov. 11 (2:30 p.m.). All performances are free and open to the public.
These performances are staged in conjunction with Virginia Tech’s Choices and Challenges project, “Nuclear Power Reconsidered,” an award-winning public forum series that explores the social and ethical dimensions of science and technology through dialogue among professional and lay members of the university and regional communities.
“Nuclear Power Play” challenges audience members to engage by exploring the issues surrounding safe, clean, sustainable, and ‘green’ technology. It investigates the role that nuclear power plays in today’s energy crisis and tomorrow’s society. Each performance will be followed by a facilitated community discussion.
"Nuclear power is compelling now because after decades of neglect, it has reemerged as a real energy option in the United States,” said Brandiff Caron, coordinator of this year’s Choices and Challenges forum. “Due to the growing concerns about climate change, nuclear power is understood by many to be an environmentally-friendly technology. The quandary, however, is judging if ‘green’ technology need only be measured by carbon emission.”
“The Choices and Challenges Project is designed to provide just such an opportunity for public debate and engagement with a variety of perspectives on issues concerning science and technology,” said Doris Zallen, who founded the annual forum series in 1985.
The performance is co-directed by Drew Dowdy and Ann Kilkelly. According to Kilkelly, a faculty member of the Theatre Arts department, “Theatre is a natural venue to explore complex questions about science and technology. Through the voices of varied characters, movement through time and various contexts, the performance becomes a space where audience members will be able to connect to the contemporary issues discussed on a very intellectual and emotional, national and personal level.”
“Nuclear Power Play” was developed by the Theatre Workshop in Science, Technology, and Society (TWISTS), a new organization co-directed by Virginia Tech’s Saul Halfon, and Virginia Tech alumna Jane Lehr, who now works at Cal Poly. TWISTS uses an innovative, multidisciplinary, and collaborative workshop model that brings together experts on the social and technical dimensions of science and technology with theatre arts practitioners to develop original performance pieces. Kilkelly serves as TWISTS’ creative director.
“Nuclear Power Play” is partially supported by the Virginia Tech Institute for Society, Culture, and the Environment summer fellowship program, the Department of Science and Technology in Society in partnership with the Department of Theatre Arts, the Choices and Challenges Project, and the Science and Technology Studies Graduate Student Organization.
For information on “Nuclear Power Play,” contact Robert Olivo (twists@vt.edu), TWISTS public relations officer, or visit the Theatre Workshop in Science, Technology, and Society (TWISTS) website. Information on the free public forum, "Nuclear Power Reconsidered,” can be found online.
