AUBURN — One night. Four close friends. Alcohol. Firtation. A conflicting story.
All these factors come into play when one friend accuses another of raping her.
Who is telling the truth?
This situation will be portrayed in the PlayRights acting troupe’s production of “One Night,” an interactive play about acquaintance rape. The show will be performed at 4 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, Sept. 15-16, at Central Maine Community College. A second production, “Four Hearts Changing,” will be staged at 7 p.m. on Sept. 15.
Performances, open to the public, will be in Kirk Hall auditorium on the CMCC campus at 1250 Turner St. Admission is free.
“One Night” is an original theater program, featuring four professional actors in a powerful story about rape among friends. One night, they get together to celebrate the end of classes, drinking beer, joking around and having fun. What happens behind closed doors later that night throws each character into an unexpectedly intense situation that will change their friendships forever.
At critical points in the plot, the actors will stop the action and remain in character while audience members ask questions to find out more about what really happened, as well as to uncover each character’s motives, feelings, opinions and plans.
“Four Hearts Changing” tells the story of two female friends and two male friends who begin dating each other. Over time, one character undergoes startling changes due to what is happening behind closed doors. As the intensity builds, the characters reach a crucial turning point. What each person decides could affect whether the escalating violence will cease or progress to a potentially terrible conclusion.
Both productions were developed by the nonprofit organization Equalogy Inc., whose members have more than 60 years of experience in the sexual assault field and have direct experience working in a rape crisis center.
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