The Advanced Drama class at George School will perform the award-winning play Marvin’s Room by Scott McPherson on November 5 and 6 at 8:00 p.m. in Walton Auditorium. A preview performance is set for November 4 at 7:30 p.m. All shows are free and open to the public.

Marvin’s Room received four major awards, including the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding New Play, and was adapted into a 1996 Miramax film starring Diane Keaton, Meryl Streep, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Robert De Niro. The heroine of the play, Bessie, has built her life around caring for her father and her eccentric but endearing Aunt Ruth, both of whom are ill. When Bessie learns that she has leukemia, she must turn to her estranged sister and nephews for help.

Although the major themes of the play are serious, George School drama teacher Nelson Camp, director of the play, pointed out that the various "zany" qualities of the characters provide a good amount of comedy. Nelson has long admired Marvin’s Room; for almost thirteen years he has assigned scenes from it to his drama classes. "You see subtle types of heroism throughout the whole play," he said. "It’s very tender."

George School senior North McKamey, who will play Bessie, said she enjoys her role because it gives her an opportunity to try something new. In contrast to Hecate, queen of the witches, whom North portrayed in a treatment of Macbeth last year, Bessie is "really down to earth," North said. Junior Christina Saggiomo, cast as Aunt Ruth, said that she likes her character because "she’s very outlandish and just really fun to play."

Marvin’s Room will be preceded by Intermission, a ten-minute comedy by Daniel Meltzer about the anxieties and expectations of an audience, playwright, director, and others on the opening night of an important new play.

As with all mainstage productions at George School, costumes are by Liz Lukac, and sets are designed by Scott Hoskins and built by his Stagecraft classes.

All George School students take four year-long courses in the arts. In addition to theater arts, the Arts Department offers courses in vocal and instrumental music, dance, video production, journalism, painting and drawing, woodworking and furniture design, ceramics, and photography. The Arts Department encourages students to be creative and enjoy themselves while they practice and appreciate a specific art form. In addition, students learn to be discriminating when they evaluate their own and others’ work.

About George School
George School, founded in 1893 by members of the Society of Friends (Quakers), teaches that each person shares a responsibility for helping to make the world a better place. The student body is diverse, representing twenty states and thirty foreign countries and a variety of ethnic, racial, religious, academic, and economic backgrounds. Each year more than $4 million in need-based financial aid is provided to eligible students.