THE BIRDS Comes to USM Department of Theatre This Month
Performances run from February 21st through March 2nd.
The Birds is coming to The USM Department of Theatre this month! USM invites audiences into the dark, unsettling world of Conor McPherson’s The Birds at Russell Hall on the USM Gorham Campus from February 21st through March 2nd.
Adapted from Daphne Du Maurier’s short story, the basis for Alfred Hitchcock’s classic film, McPherson’s stage version is a gripping, moving look at human relationships in the face of societal collapse. In an isolated house, two strangers take shelter from relentless masses of attacking birds. They find sanctuary but not comfort or peace; there’s no electricity, little food, and a nearby neighbor is watching them. Another refugee arrives with some news of the outside world, but her presence disrupts the delicate balance of survival. Paranoia takes hold inside the makeshift fortress as mistrust and betrayal begin to match the threat of the birds outside.
For director Liz Carlson, the play offers abundant opportunities to explore the human condition amidst societal crisis. She says, “Conor McPherson writes these plays that have a haunting undercurrent of grief, menace, horror, and complexity. There is so much going on beneath the surface of a character in a McPherson play - every time I work on his plays I get to discover things with actors that I never noticed before.”
To bring theatre-goers into the world of the story, the USM Theatre design team has walled off Russell Hall’s 140-seat theater and just 40 audience members per show will be sitting on stage with the four performers. Carlson’s vision is to evoke the claustrophobia of being confined in a small space with strangers while dangers constantly lurk outside. “The design team has taken this idea and run with it, welcoming the audience into the space with us. This closeness invites a specificity and attention to detail from actors and designers alike that isn’t always required when the audience is at a greater distance.”
And while the birds are the external threat, audiences will feel their presence in subtle ways. “I think people come to this play with a certain expectation”, says Carlson. “They see the swarms of birds from the Hitchcock film and expect to see a version of that in the theatre. This play is especially fun because it defies the audience’s expectations while still creating those visceral feelings and reactions that Hitchcock capitalizes on.”
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