This semester, I had the pleasure of seeing the Moravian Theatre Company’s featured productions: “Reasons to Be Pretty” and “Origin.” Both of these plays moved me deeply with their own distinct themes and colorful cast of characters. To me, they represent the ingenuity and solace that theater provides and how imagination and inspiration can bring people together.
“Reasons to be Pretty”
Reasons to be pretty? More like reasons to continue supporting theater at Moravian because wow, did everyone involved bring their A-game! From the get-go, I was intrigued by the play’s commentary on beauty standards and sexism, and I was amazed by how well each actor embodied their respective roles. It also had a small cast, allowing for more close-knit, personal interactions between characters.
“I knew I wanted a smaller cast size off the bat. Having a smaller cast size allowed for a more intimate and in-depth experience for everyone involved,” said Lexi Jordan ‘27. “Throughout the production, we were continually learning about these characters and exploring who they are, what motivates them, and why they behave as they do.”
The play follows Greg (played by Zach Santana) and Steph (played by Fenne Rudgers), a couple who face a roadblock in their relationship after Greg makes an offhanded comment about his girlfriend’s ordinary looks. This causes friction between the two, and for the rest of the play, Greg slowly learns about the effects of beauty-related comments and why women take them so personally.
Santana did such an amazing job portraying Greg as sometimes laid back, sometimes concerned about what exactly he did “wrong.” Rudgers also blew me away with how they played Steph as assertive yet passionate.
Alex Ho as Kent, Greg’s best friend and a textbook macho man, had me gasping with nearly every line of dialogue. I could feel myself getting mad whenever Kent said something objectifying or sexist; that’s just how good the performance was. Emily Turner’s performance as Carly, Kent’s pregnant girlfriend, was emotive and heartbreaking, and she delivered her lines with a ton of conviction.
I loved how the play touched on the obsession with beauty standards for women, what women go through in the dating world, the pressure to be seen as enough, and the discomfort of uncomfortable encounters with men.
“I, [like] many women, felt uncomfortable because of a man at some point. It was very important to me that this perspective was seen and heard,” said Jordan. “After the show, I heard women in the audience connecting on how they had felt alone in their experiences with unwanted male attention. There were times I doubted my decision to do this show. It depicts some extremely controversial behaviors that are hard to digest. Through this process, I found that discomfort is the point. Art can and should be uncomfortable to prove a point.”
“Origin”
An original production by Ry Kral ‘26, “Origin” is a tale of trauma, magical realism, found family, and hope. From the punchy, sometimes-quippy dialogue to the mystical settings, I was head over heels for the storytelling immersion, and the unique characters added so much depth to the plot.
Origin was inspired by a book Kral read when she was younger. “It [the play] was originally a sort of character study, and then it grew into my own original material,” she said. “So this is a labor of love of many years, and it’s wonderful to have a project like that out there.”
The character study elements shine wonderfully, considering how well-detailed each character is. Josh Jones, as the narrator, and Johnny Baron, as the ever-theatrical Holofernes, stole the show, both giving lively performances that hooked me in. Emma Fastiggi was fantastic as the enigmatic Dr. Ellison, sharing sharp back-and-forth banter with the narrator throughout the play. Dasha Mamontova, as Ishtar, gave a gut-wrenching, impressive performance, and I was completely blown away by how her character impacted the story.
Each scene had me more enthralled and on the edge of my seat than the last. One moment, I was moved by Holofernes’ trauma of losing his wife and daughter, and the next, I’m in suspense when he discovers a book of magic and learns to conjure spells.
I love how the play is so tonally versatile and does a great job balancing dark, gritty tones and light-hearted, hopeful ones. On top of that, you can tell that the cast worked so well together with how much heart and grit went into their interactions.
“I was blown away every single rehearsal with how lines were memorized quickly, and we all got along well,” said Kral. “Everyone’s dynamics were really nice. Everyone had great chemistry with each other. It was a very refreshing process to see, because I didn’t expect everyone to latch on so quickly to what I had written.”
Moravian Theatre company manager and the director of the play, Emma Ward ‘27, also described what it was like working with the cast: “There were some people in the show who had never acted before. Some people were freshmen or transfers, and they felt like theater gave them the family and the support that they needed, which is really cool.”
This being Kral’s playwright debut, it stands as an admirable body of work and embodies everything I love about theater: fluid characters, a rich plot, and captivating dialogue.
