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Show Father to daughter New BYU play examines relationship The critical and often sensitive relationship between fathers and daughters is examined in "The Apple Of His Eye," a new play by Julie Boxx opening Thursday, Nov. 18 at 8 p.m. in the Margetts Arena Theatre of BYU's Harris Fine Arts Center. Directed by Barta Heiner, the production will also run Nov. 19-20, 23-27 and 30, and Dec. 1-4 1-4 at 8 p.m., with a 4:30 p.m. matinee Nov. 29. Tickets are available at the Drama Ticket Office, Of-fice, 378-3875. , The play is a ; sometimes humorous, sometimes serious look at three women: a mother dealing with her "empty nest" syndrome, syn-drome, an older daughter trying to combine a career and a marriage, and a younger daughter embarking on the world for the first time. All three are viewed through the reactions of the father of the family, who struggles to understand un-derstand the changes and challenges his wife and daugniers are facing. Boxx, a BYU graduate student in playwriting, wrote the play after experiencing some difficulties with her own family. "Just as I was getting ready to go to graduate school, I went home, and suddenly my father and I started arguing -we just couldn't get along," she explained. "I think he was worried I'd never marry and just be overeducated and boring." Although the incident was resolved, it did make her look seriously at her relationship with her father. "I use plays as therapy," she admits. ad-mits. "I wrote 'The Apple of His Eye' to try to figure out what was going on." "I find I usually come to a different conclusion when I finish a play than when I started it. I decided after finishing the script that I was just afraid to accept my father's protection, because it would make me appear weak," she says. Boxx, who recently became engaged, is now writing a play about -what else? -- getting married. Although she has written a number of screenplays and one-act plays, "The Apple of His Eye" is her first major script. It was a prizewinner in last year's BYU Mayhew Competition; it has undergone revisions since going into production. "Barta sees the play more clearly, more objectively than I do," says Boxx. "Julie has a fine talent for comedy and a real flair for screen-writing," screen-writing," says Heiner. "But she has had to make an adjustment from the visual quality of screenwriting to the more verbal quality of playwriting." "The play started out essentially as a comedy, but I have tried to make it a more serious look al the importance of communication," says Heiner. For example, the older daughter is struggling on the surface sur-face with a family and a career. "But there's an undercurrent to what she's experiencing," says Heiner. "What she really seems to need is approval from her father." The director brings a finely tuned actor's point of view to the production. One of BYU's most outstanding actresses a n d a g r a d u a t e of San Francisco's American Conservatory Theatre, Heiner appeared last season on campus as "The Belle of Amherst." She also sent part of last year teaching at Weber State and appearing ap-pearing in its production of "Mother Courage," as well as touring with her one-woman show, "Diantha." |
