The Nameless Star at Butler University-Lilly Hall Studio Theatre

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INDIANAPOLIS - Butler University's Department of Theatre will perform the classic Romanian play "The Nameless Star" Feb. 27-March 3 in the Lilly Hall 168 Studio Theatre.

Show times are 7:00 PM February 27-March 2, with 2:00 PM matinees March 2 and 3. Tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for 55-and-over, and $5 for children. More information is at butlerartscenter.org.

Set in a European village in the 1940s, "The Nameless Star" tells the story of a big-city woman meeting a small-town man. Butler Professor of Theatre Elaina Artemiev, who is directing the show, said the show is about two different ways of life: one based on being purposeful and looking to the future with creativity, joy and passion; the other being routine, with people who are bored and unhappy.
In the play, the characters "reflect how important it is to be who you are and find out what the purpose of your life is—what gives you joy and happiness. Money can give you some comfort, but it doesn't necessarily make you happy."
"I think it's timeless," she said. "I think it's about us today. It's not just about Romania 1940-45."
"The Nameless Star" premiered on March 1, 1944, at the Alhambra Theatre of Bucharest. It was credited to playwright Victor Mincu, a pseudonym for Mihail Sebastian—a name that itself was a pseudonym for Jewish writer Iosif Hechter. He used aliases because the Romanian government's policy was to suppress the works of Jewish writers.
According to a biography on the National Theatre of Bucharest's website: "He was forbidden to practice journalism and his license of barrister was withdrawn, according to the Romanian anti-Semitic legislation at the beginning of the 1940s…. The press of the time thus described the event: 'The author, Mihail Sebastian, is hiding under a different name. The "Secret Service" agents are in the Alhambra hall, which is packed to bursting. It was not a success, it was a triumph!'"

The cast of "The Nameless Star" is:
Stranger - Mona - Olivia Anton (River Grove, Illinois)
Teacher - Max Cordoba (Newark, California)
Grig - Jeffrey Bird (alumnus) (Muncie, Indiana)
Mademoiselle Cucu - Monet Crone (Lafayette, Indiana)
Station Master - John Mays (Indianapolis, Indiana)
Udrea - Ryan Moskalick (Highland, Indiana)
Pascu - Trevor Pletcher (Plymouth, Indiana)
Schoolgirl 1 - Maddie Davies (Parker, Colorado)
Schoolgirl 2/Conductor - Mikaela Schmitt (Overland Park, Kansas)