Jax State presents the classic American drama, Our Town, opening Nov. 13

by Brett Buckner

Jacksonville, AL (11/03/2026) — Opening Nov. 13, Jacksonville State University's Department of Theatre and Film will bring Thornton Wilder's classic American drama, Our Town, to the stage beginning Nov. 13.

At first glance, Our Town is a simple story about neighboring families - the Gibbs and the Webbs - navigating the everyday joys and heartbreaks of life in the fictional town of Grover's Corners, New Hampshire, between 1901 and 1913.

The enduring appeal of Our Town comes from its ordinariness, according to Kalem Steele, a sophomore theatre performance major. Steele plays George Gibbs, half of the young couple whose relationship is at the heart of the story.

"It's so normal it becomes spectacular," he said. "It fits everyone and everything, and I think that's one of the biggest things working for it. There's always something to keep you engaged and connected to these characters, but there's nothing fancy about it. It's a story about two kids who fall in love."

Steele appreciates the emotional complexity of George, who embodies traditional concepts of what it means to be a man while remaining vulnerable and deeply human.

"George is that true, all-American boy next door," he said. "But what makes it such a beautiful story is because he's also very emotional. We don't often get to see a character that is so comfortable in his masculinity, but also has these moments where he's sad, or scared about the future because he doesn't want to grow up and become a man."

Ryanna Godfrey plays Julia Gibbs, George's mother and one of the emotional anchors of the story.

"She's so charismatic and fun, but her personality also makes no room for her to be a doormat," said Godfrey, a 20-year-old junior theater major from Barrie, Ontario. "She's a no-nonsense kind of woman, and she clearly cares so deeply about everyone in her life."

Dr. Skye Strauss, the production's costume designer, said the intergenerational aspect of Our Town is exceptionally important.

"Time accordions in moments when parents remember their wedding at their children's weddings, when the younger siblings mature into older siblings' roles, and when we revisit the dead," said Dr. Strauss, who is alsoJax State's professor of history, literature, and criticism. "Holding those moments close to each other, in a way that we can see and experience together, is part of what Wilder is doing for us as an audience."

Godfrey said another defining quality of Our Town is its refusal to manufacture a villain.

"The only conflict to be found is the very natural human conflict between desires of the heart and what is taken away by the passage of time," they said. "The togetherness of Our Town and the community within Grover's Corners doesn't come from a shared hatred, but a shared love, for each other and for life itself."

Among those guiding audiences through Grover's Corners is Marc Payne, a 20-year-old junior from Meridian, Miss. Unlike many members of the cast, Payne is an integrated studies major rather than a theatre major.

"I auditioned for Our Town on a whim," Payne said. "[Director] Carolyn Conover said it would be a good summer read, and I enjoyed it."

Payne auditioned for the role of Simon Stimson but was cast as the Stage Manager, a unique character who serves as the show's narrator.

"He's an observer," Payne said. "I believe the Stage Manager helps move the story forward, but he also provides a neutral perspective. He reminds us that the world we're watching is just everyday life, the happy times, the sad times, the growing up and the dying."

Logan Allstott-Dughi plays Charles Webb, editor of the Grover's Corners Sentinel newspaper and Emily Webb's father.

"As the play puts it," the19-year-old sophomore said, "'One man in 10 thinks it's a privilege to push his own lawn mower,' and Mr. Webb is that man."

Scenic designer Milan Anich II believes the themes of Our Town resonate beyond the stage. Hired in July as Jax State's technical director, Our Town is his first production at the University. He has found unexpected parallels between Grover's Corners and his new home in Alabama.

"In a way, that is sort of what Our Town embodies to me," he said. "Life is busy with humans pursuing things. Jacksonville is a small but strong community that feels like a family.

Anich read Wilder's play in school, but its themes hit differently as an adult.

"The show is important because we continually find it to be timeless," he said. "Humans still gather in groups, love one another, and eventually move on. We also struggle to answer the age-old question of what's next."

That sense of timelessness guided Anich's design. There are platforms representing the homes of the Gibbs and Webb families, elevated structures that transform into stores, homes and the town cemetery. Audiences will also see distant hills inspired by the city of Jacksonville.

"I wanted a hint of our local skyline to be present," Anich said. "The lighting designer and I collaborated to add hints of starlight and other things to the volume of the theatre space. The kinetic portion of the set that helps bring life to different areas is small parts of walls that help frame the homes, trellis pieces, and a street sign."

Cemetery Hill, a location central to the play's third act, draws inspiration from terraced cemeteries throughout Alabama.

"I was very interested in giving the audience the reminder that we have a finite life," Anich said. "[Director] Carolyn Conover and I settled on adding Cemetery Hill pieces at the end. These are small units that mimic flowing hills with tombstones lovingly placed by their loved ones."

Dr. Strauss said the costume design was inspired by history but not bound to it. The first decade of the 20thcentury had distinctive stylistic markers, including the women's skirt shapes, which Dr. Strauss tried to emphasize. Our Town isn't strictly a period piece, yet she knew there needed to be something theatrical about the costumes.

"They tell a strong story with colors and textures about families that has a heightened realism to it," she said. "We established our palette and a visual simplicity based on the artwork of the symbolists, and we use chiffons and satins to steal a little influence from the impressionists and their play with light."

Everything is a "little more picturesque" than it would have been had Dr. Strauss remained true to what people in Grover's Corners would have worn.

"You'll notice that the cast members still look like themselves," she said. "These are their beautiful costumes, as part of this onstage world, and they are still present and consciously telling us a story."

That story of Our Town continues to resonate with audiences and performers because it confronts universal experiences.

"It is a journey that makes you think about your own life," Payne said. "The grief we go through. The love we feel. The loss that happens in our lives, and the successes. They are, simply put, what life is about."

Media Attachments