The 2018 Waynesburg University fall play, “The Boys Next Door” is approaching, with opening night scheduled for Friday, Nov. 7. For the play’s director, Professor of Theatre Eddie Powers, the last few weeks of a production always have a lot going on.

“Putting the finishing touches on the scenery, finding the costumes, securing the props…I have help in all of these areas, but as we approach deadlines, things to get a little hectic,” Powers said.

Kristina Fisher, senior nursing major, is one of the leads in the play, and she said that everything is going according to plan.

“We’re actually running right on schedule,” Fisher said. “We’re starting really now to put all of our props together and get the sets painted and get things built and get things situated up on stage. We’re starting to run our costumes and figure out what we’re going to wear, and that’s kind of a challenge.We’re right on schedule, and things are going smoothly.”

The final rehearsals of the play represent unfamiliar territory for most of Powers’ cast. Out of 13 members, seven are making fall play debuts, and five are freshmen. For Powers, the key to the newcomers balancing “The Boys Next Door” with everything else going on in their college lives is finding an effective way to say on top of everything.

“With everybody, no matter many years ago when I was a freshman, and with our freshman today, it becomes a matter of time management, and knowing what you can get involved with and knowing what you can’t get involved with, and then being willing to commit to it,” Powers said. “That’s all a part of time management. I feel that it’s probably caught some of these students by surprise, but they seem to be adjusting well enough.”

Fisher is one of the newcomers. She plays Jackie Palmer, a caregiver to the four mentally handicapped adults the play centers around. Fisher’s only prior theatre experiences took place last spring, when she had a leading role in an one-act performance and a part in the spring musical, “The Drowsy Chaperone.” This is Fisher’s most significant role to date. Although she is a senior, she can relate to what the freshman are going through with the new experience.

“It can be scary, you know,” she said. “You’re coming into a theatre where you don’t know many people, you might never have auditioned before for [Powers], a certain director, and it does kind of catch you off guard. You’re kind of out of your comfort zone for a little bit, and I totally was, I’m not going to lie. But you truly become such a family so fast, so I feel like the freshman definitely adjusts very fast, and I adjusted pretty fast too.”

The plot of this year’s production and its portrayal of mentally handicapped individuals can be thought of as “touchy.” Powers said that while some of the cast was initially uneasy about the plot, as rehearsals have gone on, the performers are growing into their roles.

“I’m sure there is a lot of talk about the show,” Powers said. “The fact that we are portraying handicapped adults, it was a little daunting with our actors at first, but when they got to know the script, when I assured them that by no means is this a show that pokes fun at anybody, [but rather] a show that champions the special needs individual. When they discovered that— and they discovered that fairly early on— they really embraced this characters, and they found the heart, and the humor, and the joy that is part of these characters lives.”

Fisher was among the performers that was skeptical about the play.

“Quite a few other people [were hesitant],” Fisher said. “I was kind of the same way. I was a little unsure at first, but ever since we started doing the read throughs and started acting out on stage, I’m so excited for this, and I really hope that people kind of keep an open mind as they come to it.”

Overall, Powers is confident that the cast has what it takes to pull off a complicated production such as “The Boys Next Door.”

“We’re progressing very nicely,” Powers said.“We will be ready for an audience, and this cast will be bringing these characters to life and presenting the show with just a lot of heart, a lot of warmth, and I think the audience will find that appealing, and interesting as well.”