THAR minor (and ENGL Creative Writing major) Hollis LeGate did a presentation on their original one-act play For the Dead and Lonely at the 38th Annual CSU Student Research Competition, which took place at CSU San Luis Obispo April 26-27, 2024. For the Dead and Lonely tells the story of a woman who dies suddenly and finds herself unable to choose which religious afterlife she wants, especially when confronted by a bored, apathetic, teenage Grim Reaper. An unexpected parent-child bond forms between the two, leading to an exploration of not just religion, but of transgender identity and found family. Hollis developed the play in the Department of Theatre Arts & Dance’s Super Mega Molten Hot Lava New Play Festival in December 2023, and had it produced as part of the department’s Power Lines festival in April 2024.
At the CSU Student Research Competition, Hollis gave a 10-minute presentation on the play, including brief scenes performed live and in-person by student actors Morgan P. Johnson and Robert Wiles, and fielded questions from a panel of respondents. Hollis’s entry was awarded 2nd place in the Creative Arts and Design category.
Many Department of Theatre Arts & Dance students and faculty and Center for Performing Arts (CPA) staff helped develop and produce For the Dead and Lonely, and helped make this system-wide recognition of the work possible. As part of the process, Hollis made a written submission and was selected to be part of the SSU delegation to the competition by SSU's Office of Research and Sponsored Programs (ORSP). Hollis then made a second written submission to the CSU competition, which was adjudicated together with the in-person presentation. The travel of Hollis, Morgan, and Robert to the competition was supported by ORSP. Hollis was mentored in the development and production of the play, as well as in their preparation for the competition, by Theatre Arts Professor Scott Horstein.
Here is a link to the presentation, with the Q&A at roughly the 10-minute mark.
