USC Theatre Will Present THE ANTELOPE PARTY This April

The USC Department of Theatre and Dance will present the dark comedy The Antelope Party by Eric John Meyer April 3-12 at Drayton Hall Theatre.

Show times are 7:30 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday, with additional 3 p.m. matinee performances on Saturday, April 11 and Sunday, April 12.  Admission is $15 for students, $20 for USC faculty/staff, military, and seniors 60+, and $22 for the public. Tickets may be purchased online. Drayton Hall Theatre is located at 1241 College St., across from the historic USC Horseshoe. The Antelope Party contains mature language and themes and is not appropriate for children.

Meyer's suspenseful comedy is set in the world of “bronies,” cosplaying adult fans of the classic children's cartoon My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. But while all may be fair and good in the ponies' magical land of Equestria, things are becoming decidedly less harmonious in the Rust Belt apartment where the fan group meets. An overzealous neighborhood watch group billing itself as “The Antelope Party” has begun patrolling the streets, and as its political influence surges, fear and paranoia begin to creep into the bronies' (and pegasisters') circle of friendship. “Meyer's story about a group of lonely outcasts reminds us that acceptance and community can indeed be magical — but sometimes magic can be dark.” – Time Out New York

“I describe it as a cautionary tale about authoritarianism as told by adult My Little Pony fans,” says director Jesse Jou, an associate professor in the theatre program. “But on another level, I think it's a really exciting and funny political thriller that provides an opportunity to reflect on how our desire to belong can sometimes have disastrous consequences.”

Jou, who joined USC this fall as the Head of the M.F.A. in Directing track, has been taken with Meyer's allegorical story since he saw a ten-minute excerpt of the play nearly a decade ago. He directed the full-length version at Oklahoma City Repertory Theatre in 2023.

“It's a play that surprises you,” says Jou about The Antelope Party's unique appeal. “You think it will be something light and playful from its premise and then it slowly reveals itself as something much darker and more serious. The combination of those two things creates a really impactful tension that makes me excited to tell the story.”

Named as a portmanteau of “bro” and “ponies,” the brony subculture is part of a worldwide MLP fan community of all genders and ages represented both online and at conventions.

“I think people might look at the play's subject and think it's going to make fun of this particular group of people,” says Jou. “It's actually the opposite of that. By presenting these characters with respect, I hope audiences will relate to and reflect upon the ways all of us, regardless of our passions and fandoms, may share similar vulnerabilities and struggles.”

Cast in the production are undergraduates Ja'Quan Armstrong, Joshua Cook, Maggie Davisson, Destiny McCorvey, Billy McNeill, and Zierin Thomas. The world of the play, which juxtaposes the colorful idealism of MLP fandom against the dark realism of growing authoritarianism, is being brought to life by Yiren Lu with Assistant Professor Erik Flatmo (scenic design), second-year graduate design students Helen Ryser (costume design) and Victoria Rickards (lighting design) and adjunct theatre instructor Patrick Michael Kelly (sound design).

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