Cast members in the Roane State production of God’s Man in Texas are, from left, Corey Jones, Larry Schenk, and Tre Pack.
Oct. 7, 2016
Members of the audience watching the play “God’s Man in Texas” will be seated on the O’Brien Theatre stage, creating what Roane State Playmakers Director Clarissa Feldt calls a “very intimate atmosphere.”
“The great thing about putting the audience on stage is they’re very close to the action, less than 10 feet away. It helps create a communal experience,” Feldt said.
The play is about the turbulence created by a change of leadership at Rock Baptist, the largest mega-church in Houston and possibly Texas.
The play opens Oct. 14 for the first of six performances at the O’Brien Theatre on Roane State’s campus in Harriman. One reviewer describes it as a “serious play filled with comedic insight.”
It has a three-man cast and is the fall production of the Roane State Playmakers.
Former Roane State student Tre Pack of Harriman will portray church founder Dr. Phillip Gottschall — now in his 80s — who built his church into an empire and is reluctant to step away.
Roane State grad Corey Jones, also of Harriman, plays Jerry Mears, the chosen replacement who is more interested in soul-saving than extending the church’s earthly realm.
Mears is the top pick of church leaders and congregant George H.W. Bush as Gottschall’s successor, but has trouble adjusting to his sermons being broadcast on national television.
Oliver Springs native Larry Schenk, 63, now studying psychology at Roane State, portrays Hugo Taney, a former drug addict who became a born-again Christian and serves as the church’s sound technician.
Director Feldt, a proud native of Texas, said she picked the play “because the characters remind me of the people I grew up with.” Audience members can relate, she said, since the play depicts “changing over from one generation to the next.”
Casting competition was stiff, Feldt said, and rehearsals, which began in early September, are now six days a week. “They’re a great group to work with,” she said of the cast members and other Roane State Playmakers who work both backstage and up front in the 500-seat theatre.
Performances of the family-friendly play will be at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 14-15 and Oct. 21-22, with matinees at 2 p.m. on Oct. 16 and Oct. 23.
Tickets are $10 general admission and $5 for students, seniors and Roane State staff. For more information, call 865-354-3000, extension 5296.
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