News Home

DSU Professor to do "Laundry"

Madison -- Dakota State University Director of Theatre, Dr. Cynthia Allan, will head to South Carolina this May to premiere her new script, The History of Laundry. The play will be part of the Clemson Little Theatre’s "Greenroom Series" and includes a cast of 8 women ranging in age from 15 to 65. The History of Laundry is Allan’s original script, which she began seven years ago while at the University of Georgia. It is not a traditional script. "This is a performance piece," says Allan, "which can best be described as a structured improvisation incorporating acting and dance."

The script follows the cycles of laundry, from sorting, washing, and spinning through drying and folding. "It occurred to me there were a lot of references to laundry within our culture, such as the phrase "airing dirty linen," and also that the job of "doing the laundry" generally falls to women in our society," said Allan, "I wanted to write a play about laundry which could operate as a vehicle for looking at women’s lives and how we operate within society." Allan said that even though the subject matter easily could be perceived as political, her script steers away from angry rhetoric. "I can’t tolerate theatre that hits the audience over the head with a political point," Allan said, "I think an evening at the theatre can provide a lot of ideas for further reflection without losing the joy of entertainment. The History of Laundry is a very funny piece. And every woman who has heard about this project wants to contribute her "laundry" story to the mix. The truth is, women, especially wives and mothers, understand the point of this play before I even explain it to them."

Helping Allan realize her script for the first time are a group of actresses Allan first worked with in the early 1980’s. "This is the first time I’ve brought this type of vision to the stage," Allan said, "and I knew I needed professional artists who knew me well and with whom I have a strong working relationship. You need a lot of trust to bring a new script to life." The History of Laundry already has generated a lot of interest from other theatre companies, including a new theatre organization in Lexington, Kentucky. "My plan, if this initial production is successful, is to bring the show to a venue in South Dakota before having it done anywhere else," Allan says, and then smiles, "Of course, we’ll have to "iron" out the problems before I do a second production."

(end)