Arts: Manbites Devils

Symbiotic relationships seem to occur as much in art as they do in science - take it from Visiting Lecturer of Theater Studies Jay O'Berski, who notes the give and take between Duke's drama community and Manbites Dog Theater, a professional non-profit Durham theater that often uses Duke students and faculty members in its shows. "We give them incredible students, and they provide a great place to perform," O'Berski said.

Tonight, Manbites Dog begins a three-week run of Neil LaBute's The Shape of Things, directed by O'Berski and with two Duke students in front of the curtain and one behind. Graduate student Susan Walsh works as stage manager while juniors Danny Smith and Meghan Valerio, who is also co-editor of Recess' Arts section, work on stage in Shape's twisted love story, featuring a 20-something engaged couple. This is the first time any of the three has worked for a professional theater company; although, all have done extensive work with on-campus theater. They hope their professional debuts with Manbites Dog lead to more gigs in the future.

While the talent on campus is hard to ignore, O'Berski recognizes that Duke is not "an arts school." Most students, he said, perform on the side. His own desire to start a theater company brought him to Durham 10 years ago, where he was cast in plays at Manbites Dog and was eventually allowed to direct before creating his own company, Shakespeare & Originals. At Duke, he teaches "Intro to Performance" for non-theater majors, and he still doesn't understand why people say it's so hard to make it in acting: "Do they think being a doctor or being a lawyer is any easier?" he asked.

Junior Danny Smith entered Duke as a pre-med student who had always dreamed of becoming a doctor, but last semester, he redeclared as a theater studies major. Smith had performed in on-campus shows including The Changeling, Our Country's Good and Macbeth before being invited to audition for O'Bersksi last October.

A busy fourth-year molecular cancer biology graduate student, stage manager Susan Walsh was hired after sending Manbites Dog an e-mail asking if they needed help. Walsh commented that the Manbites show is focused more on acting, rather than stage design and costumes, unlike the non-professional campus productions she has worked on with Duke's Hoof 'n' Horn and Wendell Theater. All the participants note the great difference in preparation time for a professional versus on-campus production since The Shape of Things rehearsed for only a month before opening night.

Manbites gives more than an opportunity to perform. All actors are paid employees, and one of Manbites' biggest casting pools for late-teen, early 20-something roles lies in the Gothic Wonderland. Duke-affiliated cast members, many of whom met on the set rather than at Duke, said they feed off each other's ability and experience. "Manbites Dog is a great training ground. We're trying to find talent and not kid them about it," O'Berski said.

These Duke drama pros are in action at Manbites Dog Theater Thursday-Sunday, Jan. 30-Feb. 16. Call 682-3343 for tickets.