Sacred Heart University’s Theater Arts Program (TAP) traveled to Edinburgh, Scotland’s Fringe Festival for the third time in June to performed “Crapp’s River”.
“Crapp’s River,” an unauthorized parody musical of the television series “Schitt’s Creek,” starred six current undergraduates and one recent graduate student. It was written by alumni Grace Curley and music by alumni Paul Richard Keegan.
The Fringe Festival is primarily comprised of new works, ranging from amateur productions to those reaching Broadway or the West End of London. The theater arts creative team and cast ran 14 shows during their time at the festival.
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“We got to run ours daily for the two weeks that we were there,” said senior Connor Nelson, who is the President of TAP, the production stage manager, and the head of marketing for “Crapp’s River.” “It’s a great experience to get to meet other performers, to network, and to see what’s up-and-coming.”
According to National Public Radio, over 2.6 million tickets were sold across the entire duration of the festival and featured over 3,800 running productions. The group not only performed in the show, but also promoted it as they distributed flyers to people on the Royal Mile, also known as the “Times Square of Scotland.”
“We had a full, sold-out run of the shows, which is really exciting,” said Justin Zenchuck, Director of TAP.
Two preview shows were held for the public before their trip, as well as two previews in Scotland in preparation for the international stage.
“Grace and Paul always had their hands in switching things, changing lines, and tweaking things,” said Nelson. “To get a European audience to laugh is very hard, but when you hear them laugh, you know you were doing a good job at your task at hand.”
“Crapp’s River” was the only production that was sent to the Fringe Festival by a university from the United States that was fully funded.
“To say that we were the only school from America funded by our university to go here, it costs a lot and it’s no small feature, we are just so grateful,” said Nelson. “Being immersed in a culture where there are so many things going on in the world and people are putting that aside to do what they love and to put on this play that they truly are passionate about is insane, like no other experience.”
“The theater arts program not only teaches students theater, but it teaches them life skills,” said Zenchuck. “SHU’s president, Dr. Petillo, is the biggest advocate of the arts, and we are beyond grateful for the support of the arts center. It’s because of this support and incredible faculty and staff that are here to foster these students.”
