The Wharton County Junior College Drama Department will present "Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind" on Nov. 20-22 at the Horton Foote Theatre on the Wharton campus. In this scene from the play, Hailey Thorne of Katy recoils from the unwelcome advances of Charles Arriaga of Sealy.
WHARTON, TEXAS – The Wharton County Junior College Drama Department’s upcoming presentation is sure to be a show like no other. Entitled “Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind,” the play combines audience participation with short vignettes to create a unique, energetic, unpredictable experience.
“Think of it as a theatrical mixtape — fun, messy and full of surprises,” said WCJC Drama Instructor Jami Hughes.
The play is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Nov. 20-22 at the Horton Foote Theatre in the Duson-Hanson Fine Arts Building on the Wharton campus. The show is free of admission and open to the public.
The production is comprised of 30 short vignettes that must be performed in 60 minutes. An on-stage clock keeps track of the time. Instead of the typical linear style of story-telling, in “Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind,” the audience dictates the order of events.
“The audience shouts out numbers and the actors perform the corresponding plays in rapid succession,” Hughes said. “A timer is running and once 60 minutes are up, the show ends.”
“Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind” was created by Greg Allen and is reportedly the longest-running show in the history of Chicago theater. Hughes said she was drawn to the play’s structure as well as the underlying themes.
“It’s fast, raw and real,” she said. “The performers are always themselves, not characters, and everything happens in the moment, blending humor, vulnerability and urgency.”
Cast and crew include Charles Arriaga of Sealy, Cooper Claxton of East Bernard, McKenna Flores of Richmond, Jony Hernandez of Sealy, Alex Hylton of Sugarland, Santana Medina of Bay City, Aidan Meek of Wharton, Kezia Molina of Hungerford, Malachi Moore of Bay City, Sammuel Robinson of El Campo, Eric Rodriguez of Port Arthur, Seth Thayne of Wharton, Hailey Thorne of Katy, Ketanya Spencer of Richmond and Genesis Molina of Hungerford.
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