Spring Break
Students showcase love story in "The Rose Tattoo"
LeAnne Rudy
Issue date: 11/26/08 Section: Arts & Entertainment
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"The Rose Tattoo" is set in the South, somewhere between New Orleans, La., and Mobile, Ala., during the 1950s.
The area was populated with Sicilians. Junior Tyler King, casted as Alvaro, said the play is a good look into their culture and mixture into American culture.
The play is about Seraphina and her daughter Rosa. Seraphina closes herself out of the world to deal with the loss of her husband. Rosa is 15 and beginning to grow up, and the play is about both of them finding love.
"Seraphina is not happy with America," King said. "She wants Rosa to be more Sicilian."
One of the differences is that Seraphina does not approve of falling in love before marriage, while Rosa has embraced this American concept.
Alvaro reminds Seraphina of her deceased husband "by character but not by face," King said. "He is the first character Seraphina listens to to move on from her husband. He says sweet things, and he's a goof. He gives her some laughter."
The name of the play is derived from an experience Seraphina had on the night she conceived her son. She felt a pain on her chest, and when she looked at it, she saw a rose tattoo, which was the symbol of her husband.
"It is an important symbol," King said.
Junior Cassy Schillo is the stage manager for the play. She says the play has been a unique experience for her because she has been working with guest director Norma Saldivar.
"She is an expert on Tennessee Williams, and brings in a lot of detail."
Schillo mentioned the challenges of working with a guest director who was only on campus for rehearsals, but thinks the outcome will be worth it.
"The amount of work and effort put into this play is very evident," Schillo said.
Schillo also commented on the depth of Williams' playwriting, who also wrote "A Streetcar Named Desire," "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof," and "The Glass Menagerie."
"Tenessee Williams writes like it's a movie," she said. "He pays attention, and there's a meaning to everything."
The play, set in Louisiana, pays a lot of attention to the culture and dialogue of the area.
"It's historically rich," Schillo said. According to the Mississippi Writer's page, Williams helped to promote good literature in the South. "However, as a Southerner he not only helped to pave the way for other writers, but also helped the South find a strong voice in those auspices where before it had only been heard as a whisper."
The original Broadway version of the play was written in 1950, and opened in February 1951. It ran for 300 performances.
The play is running from Dec. 2-6 at 7:30 p.m. in the Barnett Theater. Tickets can be purchased online through the UW-Whitewater Web site.
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