Using original or adapted scripts, students stage plays that address such compelling issues as revenge, war, prejudice and justice.

Gathering Shells - March 2007

In March 2007, Theater for Community presented an original play, “Gathering Shells,” at the Long Wharf Theatre Stage II in New Haven. Theater professor Crystal Brian and Allan Garry, a Vietnam veteran and poet, wrote the script loosely based on Stephen Crane's novel "The Red Badge of Courage." The play explores the impact of war and trauma on those who fight and on those at home to whom soldiers return when the battle is over.

The production was featured in The New York Times. "Gathering Shells" was also chosen to be workshopped as a new work at the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival for Region I in Massachusetts in January 2008.

Berlin - November 2007

In November 2007, Theater for Community presented the musical "Berlin" at the Long Wharf Theatre, Stage II, in New Haven. Keely Baisden Knudsen, adjunct theater professor at Quinnipiac, directed. "Berlin" is a love story and epic account of the political and heroic efforts to sustain the German people during the Soviet blockade of Berlin in East Germany following World War II.

The musical explores the exciting and compelling true stories of the individuals that made history. "Berlin" composer Erik Orton spent his childhood in West Germany, where his father worked at the same Air Force bases utilized during the Berlin airlift.

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Several of the theater program's plays have qualified for the Region I Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival (ACTF), moving on to the semifinal round. Quinnipiac students have been nominees for the Region I acting awards competition.

Four productions have been recognized by ACTF:

• "Dead Man Walking"
• "The Antigone Project"
• "The Troubles of Romeo and Juliet"
• "The Beggar’s Opera"

In Spring 2006, the cast and crew of the student production “Dead Man Walking” received a surprise visit at the April 13 performance. Actor Tim Robbins, director of the film version and co-writer of the play, attended. After the performance, Robbins discussed the play’s themes with the students and the audience.