'Punk Rock' to bring 'laughs, tears' to River Campus

The trial and tribulation of high school will be brought to the River Campus stage this week with Southeast Missouri State University's production of "Punk Rock."

Freshman Rowan Van Horn of St. Louis portrays William Carlisle. He describes his character as a "pretty troubled guy" with "a lot of pent-up emotions."

"I think all of them do. But his tend to come out a bit more explosively than others," Van Horn said. "It's a British school play, based in modern day Manchester. Basically, it's kind of the tumultuous life of seven students there. They go through a lot of very good and very, very bad things."

Van Horn said the show is a mix of "the high school experience" with "what happens when you put a lot of people under a lot of stress."

"It's very adult, and it's got a lot of adult themes in it," Van Horn said. "If you're comfortable with that kind of stuff, and you like seeing that kind of stuff put on a stage, come down and see it."

From left, Josslyn Shaw, portraying Cissy, and Kamron Underwood, portraying Bennett, during a dress rehearsal of "Punk Rock" on Tuesday.KASSI JACKSON

This isn't one of the first shows Van Horn has been part of, but this character "can be a challenge, honestly."

"I was just in a show last semester. I was in 'Dracula.' I am new here, but I've gotten pretty into it pretty fast," Van Horn said. "I'd say I've had a lot of experience with plays, but I don't think I've ever done something quite as intense as this."

Van Horn said he believes this to be "probably one of the most intense roles" he's ever had.

"Come see it. There's laughs, there's tears; there's a lot of tears," Van Horn said.

Sophomore Allie Dierks, who portrays Lilly Cahill, said the audience should "expect a lot of punk attitude" with this show.

Rowan Van Horn, left, and Allie Dierks portray their roles of William and Lilly during a dress rehearsal of "Punk Rock" on Tuesday.KASSI JACKSON

"I think plays are more of a reflection of reality. They tend to tell the truth about a lot of certain everyday situations. Expect a lot of emotions to come up," she said. "This show can also take you back to your own high school experience, because I'm pretty sure anyone who has been through high school has had to deal with a bully in some way or some type of very hurtful situations."

Dierks, originally from Rainsville, Alabama, said she's been involved in theater since high school, and so far, "just about every semester" at Southeast.

"As soon as I got to college, I've been doing nothing but plays ... and this is the most intense show I've ever done. It's very emotionally jarring," she said. "And as far as my character goes, they're all troubled kids; mine is lost. She's very lost in herself, I would say."

According to Dierks, this play features many different personality types, and audience members will "definitely leave the show having learned something about [themselves]."

"We've got the smart girl, super genius, there's also a bully, the 'new girl' and your jock," Dierks said.

Allie Dierks, left, and Rowan Van Horn portray their respective roles of Lilly and William during a dress rehearsal of "Punk Rock" on Tuesday.KASSI JACKSON

Cape Girardeau native Kamron Underwood, a freshman, portrays Bennett Francis and labels the play as "somewhat of a hyper-realization of the high school experience."

"While it is the concept of teen angst, it's blown up. I've heard it quoted as 'The Breakfast Club' on Adderall," Underwood said. "It's a straight edge, and it cuts deep."

Underwood said he began his theater career during his junior year in high school, and soon after was drawn to musical theater.

"The last thing I did here was 'An American Hero,' and that was a musical," he said. "We're going to New York with that now. That's exciting."

Since Cape Girardeau is home for Underwood, he said it's good to come back, to his roots, to where it all began, yet unnerving at the same time.

"Coming back to something I know with something so emotionally jarring -- its scary. This show is a shock to the system for me," Underwood said.

For lack of a better term, Underwood said his character is the "super bully."

"He is the stereotypical high school bully, or just bully in general, amped up to about a 12. He parallels [the character William Carlisle] in the way that he is explosive and he can just go off at the smallest thing," Underwood said. "Be prepared."

"Punk Rock" will be performed at 7:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday at Southeast's River Campus. Tickets may be purchased online at www.rivercampus.org.

jhartwig@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3632

Pertinent address:

518 S. Fountain St., Cape Girardeau, Mo.