Cayuga’s Harlequin Productions Offers Lively Performances of Not Dead Yet

The spring performances by Cayuga Community College’s Harlequin Productions will offer a darkly comedic exploration of haunted pasts, missed chances and what comes after life.

Comprised of seven one-act plays, Harlequin Productions’ “Not Dead Yet” will see student-actors perform in fast-paced productions that mix comedy and drama with a dash of unconventional characters and scenarios.

Performances are scheduled for March 12-14 and March 19-21 at the Irene A. Bisgrove Theatre on Cayuga’s Auburn Campus. All shows begin at 7:30 p.m.

The connecting thread among the seven plays, said Director Bob Frame, is a not-too-serious examination of death and what comes after, and how the loss of a loved one impacts those left behind. Some of the plays are primarily comedic, while a few others offer a more serious or existential look at what comes next.

“It’s all about dealing with different parts of life, the end of life and moving on,” he said. “The students have been great. It’s challenging material, and they’re each playing multiple roles. Every role is different, and they’re learning how to make choices for their characters and how to present that to the audience, and folding comedy into those choices,” he said.

The plays set characters in diverse situations, from sweeping out the memories of past relationships in “Clearing out the Cobwebs” to cemeteries with ghastly security guards interrogating visitors in “The Graveyard Shift.”

Other plays offer antagonistic familial conversations centered around different holiday seasons (“Fun for Cats, Death for Elves”), a melancholy midnight conversation with an artificial intelligence device following the death of a loved one (“The Pickle Joke”), and a newly deceased man’s interaction with a chatty angel (“Welcome to Forever”).

Student cast members include Hope Campbell, Kronous Panek, Lilith Panek, and Dracen Walter. Student crew members include Tamia Karugu and Jacob Soltero.

Tickets for the performances at the Bisgrove Theatre are $3 for students and $10 for general. For more details on Harlequin Productions at Cayuga, visit https://www.cayuga-cc.edu/students/student-life/harlequin/.