Manchester Alumna to Direct ‘Miss Julie’ November 4-6
Ely Cook
Angelina Funk, graduate of Manchester University’s class of 2014, will be directing the play “Miss Julie” in Cordier Auditorium on Nov. 4 and 5.
Funk chose the play carefully. “The tone of this play is a little bit heavier than most,” she said. “It’s a story about class oppression, female oppression and the questions of who is entitled to what. While it was written in the 19th century, many of the themes and topics are still very relevant to today. It’s an interesting thing to compare the past to the present to see what has changed and what really hasn’t.”
Despite the cast not being set yet, Funk is very enthusiastic about staging “Miss Julie.” “It is one of my all-time favorite plays,” she said enthusiastically. “It’s a different kind of play, in that it is somewhat in real-time. It takes place over the span of a late evening, early morning of Mid-Summer Eve. The scene never leaves the kitchen.”
The cast of the play should be set on Sept. 29, as this issue is going to press. Tryouts were held Sept. 26-28. Then, on Nov. 4 and 5, the play will be held in Cordier Auditorium at 7:30 p.m. and a matinee on Cordier Stage on Nov. 6 at 2 p.m. The play will be approximately an hour and a half long with a 15-minute intermission in between acts.
Funk has a long history with the arts and with Manchester. She was raised in Plymouth, Ind., where she eventually found a passionate love for play and theatre. Funk started singing at a young age in elementary school. Then, when she got to high school and joined theatre. When she finished high school, she decided to go to Manchester University to obtain her bachelor’s degree in Vocal Performance, Music Composition and Music Theory. After she graduated with the class of 2014, she decided to come back to Manchester University and work with theatre students and the annual plays as well.
Her experience extends beyond Manchester as well. “I do a lot of local community theatre in Wabash, and sometimes in Fort Wayne,” she said. “This is often in acting but directing as well. In my free time, I like to read and sew.”
Funk also said that she also really likes animals and has three dogs and two cats to keep her company at home.