Theodore Roosevelt and Elvis Presley are certainly not the first pair someone would expect to begin a blossoming friendship. “RoosevElvis,” the play currently put on by the Department of Theatre and Dance at Northwestern State University, follows these two on a journey reminiscent of “Thelma and Louise,” alongside the story of Ann who is battling with her mental health and sexuality as she navigates her dead-end meatpacking job.
According to the play’s director, Sean Bartley, the theatre department’s Season Selection Committee composed of students and faculty chooses shows for the entire academic year at once. “RoosevElvis” was chosen for a slot just before a production of “Cabaret,” a well-known play with a large cast and very serious themes.
“We sought to contrast it with a small-cast, more obscure, and lighter comic project. We wanted a piece that was experimental in form and content,” Bartley said. “And we were drawn to an all-female cast since our department is mostly female-identified and many classic plays have more parts for men than women. ‘RoosevElvis’ checked all the boxes.”
Jay Trosclair, who plays Ann and Elvis in the play, felt drawn to the balance of humor and the heavier themes of the play.
“The play is so ridiculous, but it leans into heavy themes about gender and sexuality that really hit close to home,” Trosclair said. “It’s very special to me for that reason.”
The small, all-female cast was something that contributed to the sense of friendship the actresses felt. Abbigail Delanoix, actress and on-stage camerawoman, felt as if this brought the cast closer together.
“Working with such a small all female cast was very different than anything I’ve done before,” Delanoix said. “It made the atmosphere always very welcoming and close-feeling.”
Trosclair believed that the cast made them more comfortable in the daunting role of playing the main character, Ann.
“Being the main character in a show with only two named characters is very daunting,” Trosclair said. “I’d never had a role of this magnitude featured so often, so I worried a lot that it would be too much, especially as a freshman, but the cast and crew of this show really made me feel so comfortable with the environment and workload.”
The production relies on three kinds of scenes. There are traditional theater scenes that the actors perform live for the audience, movie-style scenes that the crew have filmed and edited in advance, and those that Delanoix shoots live as they are broadcast in the space, like a livestream.
“I hope that this multimodal format will be particularly engaging for our students,” Bartley said.
Along with this, the stage crew and managers keep the show running smoothly. Bartley and Henderson both agreed that stage manager Cortelina Encalada deserved to be highlighted for her excellent work on the technical aspects of the show.
“(She) is keeping all of the extremely complex technical elements of the production running smoothly and on schedule,” Bartley said. “This is the mostly technically sophisticated project I have ever directed, and I truly could not have attempted it without her.”
The cast agrees that “RoosevElvis” was one of the best experiences they have had preparing for a production. At the dress rehearsal, the actresses dressed as Teddy Roosevelt and Elvis Presley and could be seen bickering in-character before the show began. “Everyone’s seen your mugshot,” said actress Valerie Henderson, playing as Teddy Roosevelt.
“Genuinely, this is the most fun I’ve had doing a show,” Henderson said. “I think in my entire seven years of doing theater, this is the best one.”
“RoosevElvis” opens to the public on Wednesday, March 12, and ends on Sunday, March 16. Show times are March 12 to March 15 at 7:30 p.m. and March 15 to 16 at 2 p.m. It is a lighthearted production with heartfelt moments, and it is a show that would be a shame to miss.
