Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’ “Everybody” will be presented April 18-22 in the UTC Fine Arts Center’s Dorothy Hackett Ward Theatre.
According to Director Gaye Jeffers, a professor of directing, theatre history and playwriting at UTC, this 2018 Pulitzer Prize finalist is a comedic and contemporary adaptation of the 15th-century morality play, “Everyman.”
Jacobs-Jenkins’ play asks an average person to account for their deeds on a journey to end all journeys. Just like the original medieval morality play, the titular character “Everybody” is summoned by God to report on their choices in life. They then try to convince their allegorical friends, including Kinship, Beauty and Stuff, to join them on their journey.
“Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’ take on the play is a beautiful mix of humor and reflection; it is uniquely personal and yet fully universal,” Jeffers said. “It reminds me of those chain letters we all got in middle school warning us that—if we don’t send the letter to 12 friends in 12 minutes—we will be doomed to eat lunch alone until we’re 40. The play asks something of the audience—just like a chain letter.”
The cast is comprised of 10 UTC theatre students.
“During our rehearsal process, we read through the original play, ‘Everyman,’ and thought about the idea of death at a time when the average life span in Europe in the 15th century was around 36,” Jeffers said. “While our world is vastly different, the similarities are still worth remembering.
“We, too, have disease and plagues, violence and war, poverty and greed, and all of the harm that comes from those sources. Sometimes art reminds us that life is funny, even if we’re afraid to laugh.”
Senior Kat Wilcox-Chelimsky described “Everybody” as “being about death in that it’s about life and how the mystery of life is death.”
Wilcox-Chelimsky, a native of Knoxville, Tennessee, will be graduating in May. After receiving an associate degree from Pellissippi State Community College in Knoxville in 2019, her plan to take a gap year turned into a second year thanks to COVID-19. She started at UTC in fall 2021.
“I feel like this is a poetic ending for me,” Wilcox-Chelimsky said. “My last show at Pellissippi ended with some of the same elements that this show has at the ending of the play, and it just feels very full circle.
“My first experience on this stage was with Gaye as a director (for “Cry It Out” in February 2022), so finishing off with her as well is very satisfying. I feel like we’ve learned how to communicate our crazy theater-person thoughts eloquently between each other.”
Performances will take place at 7:30 p.m. on April 18-22, with a 2 p.m. matinee performance on April 22.
Tickets can be purchased through the UTC Box Office in person, by phone (423-425-4371) and by visiting the UTC Theatre web page. Tickets are $12 for general admission and $10 for students (with proof of student ID) and seniors.
Location: The UTC Fine Arts Center is at the intersection of Dr. Roland Carter Street (formerly known as Vine Street) and Palmetto Street.