MARFA — Marfa High School students will compete in the UIL one-act play district competitions against Fort Davis, Sierra Blanca, Balmorhea and Dell City this week. The top three highest-scoring performances will advance to the bi-district competition on March 27. This year, students are performing “Tell Me That You Love Me, Junie Moon,” by D.D. Brooke.
The play is about three young people, Arthur, Warren and Junie Moon, who have each been tragically marked in life — one is a paraplegic, one has a neurological disease and the last is disfigured from acid. They decide to pool their meager resources and face the world together to get out of the hospital and have a chance at a normal life.
The three main characters are played by Liani Salcido, Luis Solis and Diego Jurado.
The original full-length play had to be cut down in order to be performed in 40 minutes or less, said Marfa ISD theater teacher Donel Lara. Despite the challenges that have come with shortening and putting together the production, the entire process has been “a great learning experience” for the students, she said.
“Cutting it down to create a 40-minute production under UIL rules for one-act has been challenging,” Lara said. “Not to mention the number of lines that the three main characters have had to learn and memorize.”
Read-throughs and rehearsals have been taking place since students returned from the Christmas holiday, Lara said. Participating students have also met on weekends as schedules allow.
The theater troupe is hopeful they will continue to advance in regional UIL competitions this spring, but no matter how they score, Lara said she is proud of her students for learning and rehearsing the difficult play.
“In all reality, I would love to continue to advance from district, to bi-district, to area, and on,” Lara said. “However, no matter the outcome, I am already so proud of this group for tackling this play.”