‘The Effect’ takes the stage at Marinoff Theater

Shepherd University Theater Department is set to debut its latest play ‘The Effect’ by Lucy Prebble at Marinoff Theater Oct. 31 and is scheduled to run through Nov. 9.  

The play is centered around a clinical drug trial where volunteers Connie and Tristan, played by Kayla Davis and Giovanni Romero, unexpectedly throw the research off course.  

“[Connie’s] a psychology student, she comes to this trial and ends up in a little love affair with Tristan,” said Davis “She goes back and forth a lot in her head — is this love or is it just the drugs that we’re on?”  

A stark white stage sets the scene, illuminated by floodlights from the rafters. At the center, a rainbow fractal—reminiscent of psychedelic visuals—marks the spot where Jenna Anderson begins her monologue. She plays Dr. James, a psychiatrist struggling to come to terms with her depression.  

“With this role, my character is very complex,” Anderson said. “She is a character who appears very confident…She has a lot of self-loathing in her, but because she is so stubborn, it kind of comes across as confidence.”  

When asked how he balances staying true to the script while also making the character his own, Avery Copenhaver, who plays Dr. Toby Sealey, said it was one of the most complex roles he has had as well.  

“It is important to kind of put your own spin to it,” Copenhaver said. “That can be portrayed with grabbing bits and pieces of who you are and kind of putting it together. That’s the great thing about acting — you already have this character, but you use yourself to an advantage to embody it.”  

Copenhaver steps into character with ease, taking direction during rehearsal blocking one moment and embodying Dr. Sealy, the conductor of the trial, the next.  

“Theres a warmup for yourself, and then there’s a warm to get into your character,” Copenhaver said. “That’s either reviewing scenes, your beats, your motives, how you walk as that character or just how you present yourself.”  

Tickets are free for Shepherd University students and faculty and are available online.