OCU students participate in play about LGBT relationship

By Zoe Travers
Journalism Intern

Students from Oklahoma City University’s Out of the Box (a student-run theatre organization) staged Next Fall. a play about the intersection of faith and sexuality.

Next Fall, written by Geoffrey Nauffts, is about two gay men in a relationship who have very different views on Christianity.

The play follows a five-year relationship between Luke, who is devoutly religious and prays before meals, and Adam, who is an atheist and has difficulty understanding Luke’s faith. When Luke is hospitalized after a car accident, Adam tackles his own understanding of faith and struggles to connect with Luke’s family.

This is a play that handles the topics of faith and sexuality with humor and sentimentality, with witty banter that keeps the audience laughing and heart-wrenching moments that make the audience turn in their seats and maybe even shed a tear.

Directed by Luke Riggs and assistant directed by Lisi Levy, OCU’s performance of Next Fall was intimate and emotional.

The use of space was impressive and made the audience feel a part of the action, involving themselves even further in the emotion.

Owen Whitman played the part of Luke and brought a playfulness to the character, which created both a sense of wit and a sense of empathy.

Adam LaPorte played Adam and portrayed a contrast of maturity and a level of bitterness that evoked a combination of authoritativeness and introspect, even a sort of curiosity in the face of stubbornness.

Joel Jenkins and Madeline Reese played Luke’s parents, who are southern and old-fashioned and add varying levels of conflict to play, from the mother’s constant unsolicited anecdotes to the father’s use of racial and homophobic slurs.

While Luke is in the hospital, Adam is forced to interact with his parents and starts up debates such as his confusion about the afterlife. Once Luke’s condition becomes more serious, the conversations get heavier, and there’s a palpable tension between Adam and Luke’s father.

OCU’s production of Next Fall was a performance that left many in tears and in contemplation. What stood out about Next Fall was the intimacy of LaPorte and Whitman’s conversations in the years leading up to the accident - the moments of vulnerability discussing their personal philosophies and the moments of fear in their disagreements.

What also stood out was the interaction of humor and loss, making the whole thing seem even more human, with moments to which audience can comfortably relate and moments to which they may uncomfortably relate.

Copyright The Gayly 2/18/2019 4:17 p.m. CST