The Seton Hill University Theatre and Dance Program will present The Seagull by Anton Chekhov, translation by Carol Rocamora, April 5 to 13 in the William Granger Ryan Theatre, Performing Arts Center, 100 Harrison Avenue, Greensburg, Pa. The production is directed by Robyne Parrish. Tickets are $15, with student and group rates available.  A reception with the cast and crew follows the opening night performance on April 5. Call the Seton Hill Performing Arts Center Box Office for tickets at 724-552-2929 or purchase tickets online.

Performances: April 5, 6, 12 and 13: 8 p.m.; April 6, 7 and 13: 2 p.m.

Famous actress Irina Arkadina and her celebrated lover, the writer Boris Trigorin, are spending the summer on the country estate of Irina’s brother. Her son, Konstantin, an aspiring writer, wants to stage his play starring Nina, the woman he is in love with. Chekov delicately paints a portrait of the complexity of family, searing, unrequited love and the power of art with a funny and tragic brush.

The Seton Hill student cast of The Seagull includes Todd Griffin of Pittsburgh, Pa.; Lexie Hellinger of Allison Park, Pa.; Michaela Isenberg of Bethel Park, Pa.; Maddie Kocur of Oakmont, Pa.; Barbara Lawson of Manassas, Va.; Mila Liberto of New Kensington, Pa.; Malcolm McGraw of Pittsburgh, Pa.; Travis Miller of Greensburg, Pa.; Isabel Papariella of Pittsburgh, Pa., Halle Polechko of Harrison City, Pa.; Leah Prestogeorge of Pittsburgh, Pa.; Anna Strauser of Uniontown, Pa.; Riley Tate of Munhall, Pa.; Hannah Taylor of Wexford, Pa.; Noah Telford of Greensburg, Pa.; Christina Trocchio of Oakdale, Pa.; and Frankie Weber of Elizabeth, Pa.

The Seton Hill student technical staff includes Katie Adler of Springdale, Pa., scenic paint and props crew; Madyson Baer of Lewisberry, Pa., production electrician; Catherine Balaban of North Huntingdon, Pa., assistant stage manager and staff electrician; Zachary Beauchamp of Glassport, Pa., carpenter; Ashley Blazczak of Saxonburg, Pa., costume shop crew; Cassie Brugos of West Mifflin, Pa., production electrician and production crew; Kailey Campbell of Annapolis, Md., scenic paint and props crew; Molly Carbone of Allentown, Pa., set design, scenic paint and props crew and carpenter; Bayley Clark of Charleroi, Pa., production crew; Brittany Dilliott of Arnold, Pa., costume shop crew; Julianna Eyer of Pittsburgh, Pa., costume shop crew; Stacey Fils of Boardman, Ohio, staff electrician; Sydney Fulton of Freeport, N.Y., carpenter; Amelia Heastings of Bethel Park, Pa., stage manager; Amy Hotovchin of Elizabeth, Pa., assistant stage manager and costume shop crew; Diante Jackson of Greensburg, Pa., costume shop crew; Lexi Jenks of Erie, Pa., sound board operator; Audrey Johnson of Greensburg, Pa., carpenter; Liam Johnston of New Kensington, Pa., carpenter; Lance Joos of Pittsburgh, Pa., production electrician; Rebekah Kephart of New Kensington, Pa., costume shop crew; Maddie Kocur of Oakmont, Pa., movement design and carpenter; Evan Kohnstam of Herndon, Va., carpenter; Kristina Lindauer of North Versailles, Pa., hair and make-up stylist; Jessie Malone of Ruffsdale, Pa., scenic paint and props crew; Jordan Mayers of New Park, Pa., scenic paint and props crew; Kaitlyn Mayers of New Park, Pa., carpenter; Elizabeth Miller of Pittsburgh, Pa., wardrobe manager and costume shop crew; Travis Miller of Greensburg, Pa., carpenter; Heather Mirenzi of Pittsburgh, Pa., costume shop crew;  Sydney Molter of Jeannette, Pa., dresser and costume shop crew; Johanna Nimmer of Libertyville, Ill., costume shop crew; Breanna O’Brien of North Huntingdon, Pa., staff electrician and costume shop crew; Azaria Oglesby of Catonsville, Md., costume shop crew; Giordanna Paola of Ligonier, Pa., hair and make-up manager and make- up design; Isabel Papariella of Pittsburgh, Pa., carpenter; Tyler Parsonage of Murrysville, Pa., production electrician; Leah Prestogeorge of Pittsburgh, Pa., assistant movement design; Lili Real of Pittsburgh, Pa., costume shop crew; Julia Stypula of Mars, Pa., dresser and production electrician; Riley Tate of Munhall, Pa., carpenter; Noah Telford of Greensburg, Pa., carpenter; Emma Walther of York, Pa., light board operator, costume shop crew and carpenter; Jacob Westwood of Irwin, Pa., dresser and costume shop crew; and Julia Wingard of Pittsburgh, Pa., carpenter.

The Seton Hill University production of The Seagull is directed by Robyne Parrish, an actor/director currently residing in New York City. Her most recent regional directing credits include: Mumburger at Off the Wall, Steel Magnolias with the Great American Melodrama and Grey Gardens with Front Porch Theatricals.  In 2018, Parrish directed her new play, Still, Birth. co-written with NYC Labyrinth Theatre Ensemble collaborator, Coley Company for the New York Theatre Festival where it was nominated for Best Play. She served five seasons as Artistic Director of the Gilbert Theatre in North Carolina. In New York, she was Founding Artistic Director/Executive Director for six years of Sonnet Repertory Theatre Inc. (now in its 15th season) and assistant/intern to the Company Manager of WICKED on Broadway. In Pittsburgh, Parrish has worked as an actor at Pittsburgh Public, City Theatre, the CLO, Quantum, Off the Wall, Bricolage, PMT and The REP, as well as in commercial/film. A theatre educator for more than 15 years teaching students from grade school through the collegiate level, she is currently Adjunct Theatre Professor at FTCC in Acting/Voice and a private coach with NYC Actor and the Biz. She earned her BFA in Drama from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts and is an MFA Graduate candidate in Theatre and Pedagogy at Point Park University.

Professional artistic staff for the production includes Ken Clothier, assistant professor of theatre, lighting design and master electrician; Alicia DiPaolo, house manager; Karen Glass, assistant professor of theatre, set design, charge scenic artist and properties manager; Ryan McMasters, adjunct instructor of theatre, sound design; Elaine Montgomery, costume shop manager; Susan O’Neill, instructor of theatre, costume design and costume director; Katya Shaffer, box office manager; Terra Skirtich, adjunct instructor, theatre, costumer; Kellee Van Aken, chair of theatre and dance and associate professor of theatre, artistic director; Caila Yates, technical director. Venue Information: All Seton Hill Theatre performances are held in the William Granger Ryan Theatre in Seton Hill’s Performing Arts Center, 100 Harrison Avenue, Greensburg, Pa.  The Performing Arts Center is a fully accessible and climate-controlled facility.  Parking is available in four nearby Greensburg parking areas:  the Bell Parking Garage on North Otterman Street (across the street from the Performing Arts Center), the Hellman-Ghrist lot on North Main Street, the Albert Grillo lot on Seton Hill Drive and the Wib Albright lot off West Otterman Street.  

Ticket Information:  Single admission tickets are $15.  Seton Hill students (with valid ID) can purchase tickets for $5.  Non-Seton Hill students (with a valid school ID) can purchase advance tickets for $10.  Students from any school can purchase rush tickets five minutes before curtain, subject to availability, for $5 (with valid school ID).  Groups of six or more can purchase tickets at a rate of $10 each with a reservation and advance payment. Order tickets online, by phone at 724-552-2929, or by mail at SHUPAC Theatre Box Office, Seton Hill University, 1 Seton Hill Drive, Greensburg, Pa. 15601-1599.  Box Office Hours, by telephone: 11 a.m. – 6 p.m., Monday through Friday. Extended hours on performance days: 11 a.m. – 8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday and 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. Sunday.

Seton Hill University’s Performing Arts Center is 73,000 square feet of everything a performing arts major needs to move from student to professional.  The Center houses two dedicated, flexible performance spaces, the Carol Ann Reichgut Concert Hall and the William Granger Ryan Theatre. The Center also includes a performance studio, new classrooms, rehearsal rooms and technical areas that include the best equipment for learning and performing, from Steinway pianos to the latest in lighting, sound, video and acoustics.  The Center is located in downtown Greensburg, putting it squarely in the middle of the city’s cultural district yet still only minutes from Seton Hill’s main hilltop campus.

The Seton Hill University Theatre and Dance Program has a long history of educating performing arts majors for professional careers while playing a vital role in the educational life of the campus.  Seton Hill’s Theatre and Dance Program offers four full-length productions (as well as a number of shorter works) each year that generate audiences of over 3,500 and speak to topics addressed in courses across Seton Hill’s curriculum.  For more information on the Theatre Program at Seton Hill, please visit www.setonhill.edu or call 724-552-2934.

PHOTO: Anna Strauser, Christina Trocchio and Noah Telford in the Seton Hill University production of The Seagull.