AIDS play explores friendship

During the past two decades, the AIDS epidemic has taken many lives and left lasting impressions on society. The virus, which attacks the human immune system, has changed attitudes and ideas about sex, sexuality and life. AIDS also is the subject of some of the most haunting and beautiful works of modern art -- especially that of the theater.\nAt 8 p.m. and 11 p.m Friday and Saturday in the Rose Firebay of the John Waldron Arts Center, 122 S. Walnut St., two undergraduates will present "Lonely Planet" by Steven Dietz. The play is about the loneliness of the disease and what companionship can mean for those suffering from AIDS.\nOne of two main characters, Jody, runs a map store where he stays all the time, secluding himself from the outside world. His friend Carl brings in chairs that represent their departed friends and leaves them in the store. When Jody must leave the store to take an HIV test, Carl convinces him to go so he can avoid becoming another chair. The two become close friends and realize the importance of human contact during trying times.\nOne unique aspect of this production is the perseverance of its performers to put together the show. Seniors Tom Ridgely and Stan Wash produced the show together without a director, and until recently, without any crew, stage managers or technical staff.\nAfter having the idea to produce the show, Wash sought to work with an actor he respected.\n"Tom was the first actor I asked. There are few actors here who could preserve the subtlety and still keep the tremendous comedy alive. Tom was an obvious choice," Wash said. "I'm graduating soon with a degree in musical theater, which is all I've been doing lately -- with the exception of some Shakespeare and Moliere -- and I thought a little black box intense realism would be good for me."\nThe two have worked together for the past five weeks without the help of an outside director, which Ridgely said can be an actor's dream, but also an actor's nightmare. This form of creation led to the two performers creating their own theater of sorts.\n"It was nice to have all the control, but a burden to have all the responsibility. So, in the end what works will be the result of our efforts and what doesn't will also be the result of our efforts. Exciting and scary," Ridgely said. "I decided I wanted to find peers of mine whom I respected and do work on our own -- create our own theatre. So, that's why when Stan approached me I was excited (to) take the challenge."\nThe two actors, respected by their peers, have received support from not only their friends (in capacities ranging from run crew to lighting design) but also from theater department directors who have recently come in to offer feedback before the show opens. \nJunior Arian Moayed, who is performing in "The Food Chain" in T300, supported the show by advertising.\n"People should see this show because they are two great University actors finding their own theater and their own way of doing it and their own budget," Moayed said of "Lonely Planet." "This is the how great theater started and will continue to shine"