Wilder play 'Our Town' at Asbury University focuses on mundane life

You have the chance to leave your regular day-to-day life and go sit inside the day-to-day life of another place in another time this weekend.

Asbury University is presenting “Our Town” Thursday, Friday and Saturday in the Greathouse Theatre.
The Thornton Wilder play focuses on the typical activities of a small town in New Hampshire in the early 20th century.

“We take a look at their day-to-day life, but in reality, ‘Our Town’ is about every town — it’s about your town, my town, and it’s about every person in every time,” said director Janelle Gore, a 2011 Asbury graduate who is now an adjunct professor as she works on her master’s degree. “It’s about fully living and taking advantage of the time that you are given.”

Gore said the play mimics reality in its range of emotions.

“The idea we’re trying to get across is that the ordinary is important — that’s what we have been focusing on,” she said. “It definitely covers all the spectrum from serious to funny.”

With a cast of 20 that also functions as the crew, the show is intimate as many actors interact with the audience and some chairs are just feet from the center of the stage.

“I think this will be a different audience experience than Asbury has presented before; the audience will be really close here, and they are very much involved in the show,” Gore said. “The actors speak directly to them, and there will be action happening all around them at any time. I think it will be really fun and a different experience than people might be used to as observers.”

The show goes on at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday in the theater in the Miller Center for Communication Arts. A link to purchase $5 tickets is available online at asbury.edu and at the Miller Center box office.