The evening of one-acts begins with “Variations on the Death of Trotsky”by David Ives and directed by second year directing graduate student Taylor Clemens of Elkader, Iowa. On August 20, 1940 an undercover agent, Ramon Mercader (Lukas Ptacek), attacked Russian Revolutionary Leon Trotsky (Trevor Hudson) in his Mexican home with a mountaineer’s ice axe. The murderous blow to Trotsky’s head failed to kill him instantly. Trotsky was later taken to the hospital where he was operated on, surviving for a day. It is this day that Ives presents to the audience and the various ways in which Trotsky has died. These variations range from soap opera drama to farce.

The evening concludes with Elaine May’s power play, “The Way of All Fish,” directed by Ryan Fortney of Kansas City, Mo., a first year graduate student in directing. This comedic play centers on the battle for supreme power between two women: Ms. Asquith (Emily Vortherms), an upper level executive at Asquith Enterprises and her secretary, Miss Riverton (Leah Geis). Over sushi and wine the two discover that perhaps they are not as strong or as powerful as they originally thought. Envy, murderous plots, raw fish and three story walk ups all combine to make the rapid paced and comedic whirlwind.

General admission tickets ($10 General Admission and $5 USD students with ID students) can be purchased by calling the University Theatre Box Office at (605) 677-5400 or online at www.usd.edu/theatre.

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