'Just Before Sleep' grapples with theme of homelessness
Coffee Cup Karl, played by Zach Hall and Justine, played by Lauren Kohler, form a friendship on the street in Wolfpack Theatre Co.’s production of “Just Before Sleep.”
Shining a light on the struggles of homelessness, the Wolfpack Theatre Company will present “Just Before Sleep” Jan. 14 and 15 at 6:33 p.m. in the Wolfpack Theatre at Glacier High School.
Tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for children, students, and senior citizens and are available at the GHS Main Office and Photo Video Plus or at the door if still available.
“Just Before Sleep” tells the story of a family who have found themselves without a home after experiencing a fire. The story explores the daily challenges through the eyes of a mother and two daughters who are coming to terms with the sudden changes that have upended their lives. Living on the street, this small family struggles to navigate the confusing and difficult world of dealing with social agencies while trying to find decent housing and medical assistance.
“This play is so important,” director Greg Adkins said. “Social topics become trendy, and I feel like talking about the homelessness crisis in America isn’t getting the attention it deserves. “I am proud of the work of the Wolfpack Theatre Company, and this play will remind us all about an important issue facing so many families.”
“Just Before Sleep” is a timely and relevant story that helps all those involved from actors to audience members to learn about a crisis they may not realize is happening around them as even students in our local schools are facing situations very similar to the story.
A winner of the American Alliance for Theatre & Education’s New Play contest, “Just Before Sleep” is ultimately a story of love, determination, hope and the human drive for survival. Theatrically structured in both the present and the past, this play gives voice and dignity to a family while drawing a clear picture of what a family may go through when struggling with homelessness.
This production will be presented by the Acting and Stage Production class at GHS. The class helps students to further develop their character portrayal skills and the discipline required of an actor. The class uses monologues and ensemble performances along with the full play production process to instill the concept of theater as an art and assist the actor in analyzing a script and understanding the role of the actor in the production process.
“This class allows all who want to be in a stage production the ability to do that within the confines of a classroom,” Adkins said. “And this cast is simply the best! They embraced the truth of this play with sincerity, awareness and humanity.”
The cast of “Just Before Sleep” includes Kyrie Kensey, Lauren Kohler, Opal Besaw, Zach Hall, Alyssa Roberts, Teagan Powell, Landon Mumm, Amaya Eastman, Avrey Mele and Ella Nielsen.
Supporting the cast behind the scenes is the stage and technical crew, Dresden Allred, Ty Espeseth, Sydney Fletcher, Fiona Fuller, Jaclyn Green, Mayleen Hoover, Kassidy Murphy, Asher Robinson, Isaac Schroeder, Kaleb Snedigar, Josha TwoMoons, Braden Wakefield, Alexa Wilton and Jauplin Young.