“Ride The Cyclone” is the Behrend Theater Club’s current production. It runs from November 7 through November 9, and then again from November 14 through 16. The production is directed by Jaymin Willis, a prominent member of the theater community at Behrend, and is the club’s first official show. The Beacon was gifted two free tickets to the November 8 performance.

The show follows six teen choir members who are killed after an accident occurs on the rollercoaster, the Cyclone. They are greeted in the afterlife by a mysterious fortune telling machine who promises the chance for one of them to return to life. While being largely a black comedy, the show contains an undeniable heart that carries its central themes of tragedy, joy in the face of that tragedy, and the value of a life, no matter its length.

The club used two rotating casts, Fortune and Fate, and the Beacon attended a performance by the Fate cast. Vida Sevilla performed as Karnak, the fortune telling machine, and also greeted the audience before the show with their lucky numbers and small predictions, all while urging them to ‘ride the cyclone’. Her monotone performance and jerky movements lended an air of reality to the carny-like nature of her character, which then highlighted the few moments of complete sincerity Karnak has. Taylor Goodyear played Ocean O’Connell Rosenberg, whose pep and optimism contrasted hilariously against the character’s often self-serving attitude. Grace Freer played Constance Blackwood, whose shy and non-combative demeanor slowly fades into one of the show’s most heartbreaking monologues, which itself is immediately followed up by one of the show’s defining moments of joy. It is also worth noting that Freer performed the flute solo in her song “Sugar Cloud” live. 

Paul Pudimat played Mischa Bachinski, perfectly balancing the character’s inherent silliness as a Urkirain sound cloud rapper along with the tragic reality of his death and the life he left unlived. Pudimat’s song “Talia” is also performed partially in Russian. Will Mortimore played Noel Grueber, who served to ground the show in its more comedic leanings. But Mortimore also brought an air of gentle grief to Noel that sold his more serious scenes, which contrasted nicely with the scenes he shared with Pudimat. Oliver Brooke, who returning students may recognize as Emmet from last semester’s production of “Legally Blonde”, played Ricky Potts and lended a subtlety of movement and reaction to the character that lured the audience into the insane surprise of “Space Age Bachelor Man”. Norah Dana played Jane Doe, whose stilted body language and exquisite voice breathed life into a character defined by her lack of it. 

However, it was not only the actors who shined in “Ride the Cyclone”. The set design, which was assembled in only three days after the conclusion of Hope Springs, gave a sense of both whimsy and dread from the moment the audience entered the theater. Long twisted tracks of the now mangled Cyclone framed the projection screen, with a large LED sign for the ride flickering blue and green hanging above it. The sides of the stage were built up with shelves of old fair prizes, antique furniture and knick-knacks, and of course, Karnak, whose box blended in seamlessly with the greater set. Costumes and props were hidden among the set, giving actors ease of access without disrupting the show’s look or feel. This is of course not to undermine the work of the stage crew, whose unseen hand helped the show at every turn. Finally, it is worth noting the show’s lighting, as the sporadic colors and flashing lights succeed in keeping the audience as entranced and disoriented as the characters themselves. It is worth noting however that the show does have an epilepsy warning, and those who are sensitive to flashing lights should not attend. 

As of this article’s publishing, there are still a small number of seats left for November 15 and 16. The Beacon wholeheartedly recommends the show to all who can attend, and is once again grateful to the Behrend Theater Club for letting it attend for free.