“It is very different than what I’m used to,” says actress Emily Mose, who will be playing the role of Agnes, in reference to St. Lawrence University’s upcoming theater production — She Kills Monsters. “It’s really nice to be back, though, after Covid,” she says. As someone who has been involved in the pre-covid theater scene at SLU and is pursuing a career in the industry, she is excited to be back on the stage. 

The situation of the campus in terms of Covid will directly impact whether or not this show makes it to the stage, according to fellow actress Aja Samuel, who will be playing the role of Tilly. As a sophomore, this will be Samuel’s first time on the St. Lawrence stage. “I think that it’s impressive that we’ve been able to make it this far,” she says. 

For everyone involved in the rehearsal process — new to the St. Lawrence stage or not — it has been an experience like no other. Despite the many challenges the members of the cast and crew have faced as a result of Covid-19, they are confident and excited to keep working on the show, scheduled to play from Nov. 11 – 14, over the next few weeks.

Since Covid struck, “this is really the first opportunity we’ve had to kind of work through mounting a full production,” says Assistant Professor of Design Jenn Baker. With that comes the challenge of getting back into the rehearsal process — especially since the rise in cases at the beginning of the semester pushed the artistic process back by about two weeks.

Another challenge has been the looming fear that the show may not make it to opening night in the way in which it is anticipated. “In shows I’ve done in the past it’s about: memorize your lines, be off book, know where you’re supposed to be and the show is going to happen no matter what,” Samuel says. Now there is the added fear that after all that hard work, the finished product will not be able to be shown to an audience live on stage. “Zoom is a great alternative, but in no way replaces it,” says stage manager Carley Sherwin, who stage managed two Zoom shows last school year. 

Due to this uncertainty, director and Associate Professor of the Performance and Communication Arts Department Jennifer Thomas says that it has been important to think about the rest of the company when it comes to Covid safety. It is essential for the cast members to limit their risk so that they can make it to opening night. 

Along with these challenges has come a new sense of appreciation, though. “We’re just so excited and hungry to be doing live theater again,” says co-collaborator and choreographer Jessie Madden. “There’s a gratitude in the midst of all of the work.” 

The thing that most attracted Thomas to choosing this show was the plethora of styles that can be found within it. “There’s this beautiful blend of comedy and heartfelt authenticity about it and I think it’s sort of a brilliant blend to really highlight what we need now in our world. We need to laugh but we also need to feel,” she says. 

She explains that Agnes experiences trauma within the story, just as we all have experienced a collective trauma through the emergence of Covid. This show is a reminder that through processing our trauma, we can come out the other side — just like Agnes does, she says. 

There is something for everyone in this show. “There is a lot of appeal across age ranges,” Baker says. She Kills Monsters gives the stage to many powerful female characters as well. “It’ll be great to see a main female protagonist,” Sherwin says. Tilly’s journey of self acceptance as a queer kid is important to show on this campus as well, Thomas says. 

“I think that people should come see the show to support the campus as a whole moving in a positive direction,” Samuel says. “Seeing the show is the first step in building back those old things that made SLU SLU.”