As yet another semester comes to a close, so does another season of theatre. This year, the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater’s theatre and dance department had an amazing lineup of shows, including a musical, a Shakespearean play and a mystery-style play. But for the final play of the semester, the theatre and dance department wanted to go out with a bang.
Or maybe a punch?
As their final show of the 2023-2024 season of theatre, the UW-Whitewater theatre and dance department decided to present “Sweet Science of Bruising” by Joy Wilkinson and directed by Sara J. Griffin.
“We enter a world of underground boxing in London, 1869,” quotes the program. “Four different women from four very different walks of life, all yearning to change their circumstances, to reinvent their existence. Through boxing they each unlock a strength and resolve, revealing to be more formidable than any of them ever imagined. Their determination and grit asks us to contend with what lies within each of us, what untapped potential we may be denying because we are afraid to look.”
The play follows four women as they venture into the life of boxing: Polly Stokes, played by senior Makayla Fedler, a low class woman who struggles to make a living; Violet Hunter, played by junior Emma Dutcher, a nurse practicing to become a doctor; Anna Lamb, played by sophomore Anna Olson, a wife stuck in an abusive marriage; and Matilda Blackwell, played by senior Dyamond Jackson, a woman who’s ambitions meant nothing in the real world.
As in the synopsis, the show involves boxing and other forms of fighting. To be able to perform these moves without hurting each other, the department turned to UW-Whitewater alum and fight choreographer Rasell Holt. Graduating in 2015 with a major in theatre, Holt came back to help the cast of “Sweet Science of Bruising” with fight training and choreography.
“One of the big challenges admittedly is that the program itself does not have a stage combat emphasis, so there are a lot of artists that have had no stage combat whatsoever before this show, let alone the specifics behind boxing,” said Holt. “That presents its own challenge, but with challenges you get opportunities to learn, and I think that all the actors approached it with an incredible amount of eagerness to learn.”
The play also deals with the heavy topic of domestic violence against women. In multiple scenes, there are displays of physical violence towards the women characters along with emotional abuse. One character that has to suffer this is Olson’s character, Anna Lamb, by her husband Gabriel Lamb, played by senior Bryce Giammo.
“We wanted to go deep into what the character was feeling and what she was going through to do an accurate portrayal because this is something people deal with in their lives,” said Olson. “It is a hard, harsh topic and we wanted to portray it correctly, and if not, then we should not be portraying it at all.”
When asked about the topic and his character, Giammo stated “It is a very hard role to play. I had to have a lot of talks, especially since I play a very abusive character, so I had to have a lot of talks with all my scene partners and Sara and go over boundaries to make sure everyone was ok.”
“Sweet Science of Bruising” runs at the Hicklin Theatre in the Center of the Arts until April 27, with performances April 25-27 at 7:30 p.m. If you are interested in any other upcoming events at the Center of the Arts, such as Crossman Gallery exhibitions and performances in the Light Recital Hall, visit the Center of the Arts website.
