After countless hours of rehearsals since September, the Sarofim School of Fine Arts theater department debuted their first show of the season with the opening of Men on Boats on November 7th at 7:30 p.m. at the Jones Theater. 

Written by Jaclyn Backhaus, Men on Boats accounts a true(ish) tale of an 1869 expedition, when one-armed captain, John Wesley Powell, and his crew of insane yet loyal volunteers set out to chart the course of the Colorado River across the Grand Canyon. Together, the ten explorers navigated their journey through the river, with only four boats between them. Full of comedy, action, and a deep examination of how much we are willing to go to reach our goals, Men on Boats puts on a show that you can’t help laugh out loud, but also reflect on.

One aspect that made Men on Boats so special is its casting. While the play is historically set with white men on stage, they are played by a talented group of female actors, paying homage to Backhaus’s original goal of casting racially diverse, queer women. You can clearly tell the actors have a lot of chemistry with each other through not just their character’s actions, but their dialogues as well. While the show is filled with many hilarious moments, it is also filled with heartfelt moments as well, creating powerful scenes between characters and getting a deeper look into their minds (think Brokeback Mountain… but boats). 

Additionally, I can’t praise the cast without praising the crew. The set looked absolutely incredible and it really helps you set the scene by immersing you back in time. The costumes also looked amazing on everyone and the lighting for each scene was especially well done, with the contrast of action-packed movements and heartfelt moments between characters.

Since its opening weekend on November 7th-9th, the performance has attracted gatherings of more than 250 people during the entire weekend. I will say it is rightly deserved. Everyone did an amazing job putting the show together, from the actors, to the tech crew, and the director. You can see the hard work from everyone who has worked on the show and it is paying off wonderfully.

The last weekend to catch this fantastic show is November 14th-16th. Similar to the first weekend, performances will be on Friday and Saturday starting at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday starting at 2 p.m. Southwestern students can also receive free tickets to the performance, so make sure to stop by the box office to grab them while you can before the show!