With its celebration of life in crisis "FUBAR: The Musical Part 4" may make you laugh until you cry.
"FUBAR" was the idea of University of Central Oklahoma theater professor Daisy Nystul, who wanted to create a show that could involve all students in the program. Department Chair Robert McGill liked the idea and suggested that the theme of the show should be crisis. With that in mind, a student suggested the infamous acronym FUBAR as the title.
The show is comprised of scenes written and submitted by students.
"I let the students express themselves pretty freely. We push the envelope pretty hard," Nystul said.
WIDE TOPIC RANGE
According to her, the mantra of the show is "No crisis too big. No crisis too small," which includes a wide range of topics and tone, from the comedic to the dramatic. Past subjects have included a broken nail, relationships, anorexia, death and rape.
"The students tend to write about what they know, but there is still a lot of fiction," Nystul said. "Some of the more personal stories are submitted anonymously."
The show opens with a "FUBAR" theme song that everyone sings, which Nystul said serves as a kind of initiation. "FUBAR" is more informal than the average theater production, tailored to a college student's schedule, with free snacks that the audience is encouraged to munch on during the show.
"The show is short, just over an hour, so the average college student can still go out for a night on the town afterwards," Nystul said. "For $2, you can check out the show and jam on into the rest of your evening."
She said "FUBAR" served as a great bonding experience, especially for freshmen participants. Juniors and seniors have the opportunity to direct, giving them a different perspective on how difficult and nerve-racking the process can be.
"I keep trying not to do the show at this point because it takes so much extra time, but now the students are so into it, they want to do it every year, which is great," Nystul said. "It has developed this cult following and people ask 'What's going to be in the next "FUBAR?"' When I started it, I said I wanted to do 'FUBAR: The Musical Part 40' someday, so I've got a few more to go."
"?Eric Webb
