The devil comes to an old-time village, trying to make a deal, looking for souls to steal.
When Scratch encounters Elizabeth Sawyer, an outcast who lives in a hut and is believed to be a witch … well, he wants to get to know her better.
“He is very much wowed by characteristics he’s never seen before, wrapped up in her intelligence and her security within herself,” said Amy Rene Byrne, who is directing the play “Witch” for the Bloomsburg Theatre Ensemble. “It’s the first time in the whole history of his existence he’s wanted this connection with a human.”
The play is loosely based on a real Elizabeth Sawyer, who lived in the 17th century and was immortalized long ago in a play called “The Witch of Edmonton,” in which the devil visits her in the form of a dog.
“The playwright has re-imagined so much of the story and made it relevant for today in a way that is just dazzling to me,” said veteran BTE member Elizabeth Dowd, who has the title role. “It examines women and power, and the kind of power that society grants to men and the way it opens doors, and the ways those doors are closed to women.”
“This is squarely in the dark comedy realm,” Byrne said. “I find it to be equally funny and very gut-wrenching at times. It’s a really smart play in that it will have you laughing in one moment, leaning in the next and pulling back with a multitude of emotions, whether it’s recognition or horror or disgust.”
“It’s my favorite kind of theater,” Bryne added.
And, for Dowd, portraying Elizabeth Sawyer is “a real gift.”
“Roles that have so much depth and resonance for a woman in her 60s are relatively few,” the actor said. “Jennifer Silverman is a female playwright, and while I’ve been in plays written by male playwrights who do an incredible job, sometimes you can feel the difference.”
“The presence of a female voice is at the heart of this play.”
Sawyer is “both an outcast and a creature of desire,” Dowd said, explaining “the devil becomes attracted to her. He’s not really a young man; that’s just his guise. He doesn’t care how old she is or what she looks like.”
“Playing romantic scenes with someone 30 years younger is quite extraordinary,” she said, “but Eric Wunsch and I have a true offstage friendship, so we’re able to be vulnerable with each other. I think if I were part of another company, I might feel embarrassed for a younger actor to have to pretend that he’s attracted to me.”
”But in our Ensemble, I feel valued by him and it has nothing to do with appearance or age. To remove that hurdle as an actor is an incredible gift.”
So the play is about a relationship that develops between a woman and the devil. But do we knowwhy she’s been an outcast, what the devil might offer in exchange for her soul, and whether she would be willing to make a deal?
“She’s sort of forced into being an outcast,” Byrne said. “There’s something you find out later in the play. Her reputation was ruined because of a relationship, and she makes this comment about how quickly we go from undesirable to untouchable.”
“There’s a big, overarching question: Do you have hope that things will get better?,” Bryne said. “What I hope people will walk away from this production is, what are your hopes for the future?”
“There’s a point in the play where Elizabeth says we’re caught in a web our parents built, and our grandparents and our great-grandparents,” Dowd said. “I can’t say that without looking at the climate and the Ukraine and the divide in the country. The audience listening will fill in the blanks.”
The playwright wrote the script in modern language, but the set and costumes are designed to make people think of the Middle Ages.
“It’s a delightful collision,” Dowd said.
In addition to Dowd and Wunsch, the cast includes BTE member Andrew Hubatsek, guest artists Kimie Muroya and Dre’Land Goar and membership candidate Aaron White.
Performances begin March 31 and run through April 16 at 7:30 p.m. Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays and 3 p.m. Sundays. Tickets are available at the box office, 570-784-8181 and online at bte.org.
“Pay What You Decide” performances will be March 31, April 1 and April 2. You may reserve your seat for free and choose your own price after the show.
All single ticket income from the 7:30 p.m. April 8 show will benefit relief efforts in Ukraine. School matinees are available for high school students; contact Paula Henry at 570-458-4075 or phenry@bte.org.