Playwright Gunderson joins Seminole State’s ‘Silent Sky’
A beautiful play, a brilliant playwright and an out-of-this world location will come together as Seminole State College presents “Silent Sky” on Thursday.
“Silent Sky” tells the true story of 19th-century astronomy pioneer Henrietta Leavitt, so it’s fitting that the online presentation is in partnership with the college’s Emil Buehler Perpetual Trust Planetarium.
The play, which will be read by Seminole students, was written by Lauren Gunderson, widely considered to be the most produced living playwright in the U.S. Gunderson, whose works include “I and You” and “Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley,” will introduce the college’s production.
Originally, the show was to have been produced for an in-person audience before coronavirus safety precautions moved the performing arts online.
“We are so excited to partner with the planetarium to give our students the platform to showcase their hard work, talent and dedication to this beautiful story,” said theater professor Niki Salamon, who is directing the play. “As an educator, I always look for the lesson in things. I think the lesson here for our students is to never feel defeated, never give up, and to always push yourself to create positive solutions out of the worst of scenarios.”
That lesson in perseverance mirrors Leavitt’s real-life story as reflected in “Silent Sky.” During a time of incredible scientific discoveries, Leavitt’s ideas were often pushed aside because of her gender. Yet, while balancing career and family obligations, she succeeded in making discoveries that advanced our knowledge of the universe.
“Henrietta Leavitt’s influence on astronomy was profound in that her research led to the understanding of how far objects in the universe truly are,” said Derek Demeter, planetarium director. “Her work paved the way for astronomers like Edwin Hubble who used her mathematical relationships to deduce that faraway objects are in fact part of distant galaxies.”
The planetarium helped the “Silent
Sky” actors learn more about Leavitt’s work and contributed to the immersive visuals used during the play reading. As part of the presentation, local astronomer Barbara Harris will speak on Leavitt’s legacy.
“Silent Sky” will be the second performance in the college’s Center for Fine and Performing Arts Zoom play series.
“It’s what we do. We have to be creative,” said Salamon, who instituted the series. “The arts are so important. It would be a disservice to the students if we didn’t continue. The students we have are super creative and motivated. Their want and desire to do it is what guides me.”
She hopes that the series will be able to present students’ original plays, short one-acts and possibly even musicals. It has been an unusual year for the theater program, which lost its campus home in May 2019 after structural damage to the building was discovered.
“There are a lot of different things we want to do,” Salamon said. “We already had to reinvent ourselves once with not having a theater, so we’re just doing it again. Nothing is stopping us. That’s for sure.”
The reading of “Silent Sky” will stream at 7 p.m. Thursday. Find the link to watch by clicking on the event at facebook.com/ seminolestatearts.