Abraham Johnson, a sophomore theatre major, is paving the way for student written work in the UGA Theatre and Film Department. His play “Sunshine Town”, directed by Jessica Browder, will premiere early February in the Arena Theatre. The play tells the story of a “fictitious town where all of the morals are flipped— monogamy is horrible, sex and drugs are the only important things, and women have virtually no rights.” The play questions the audience’s perception on the moral codes in society. Johnson says that Sunshine Town is very much his “teen rebellion play after coming from a very conservative high school and hometown.”
Darlington High, located in Rome, GA, is where Johnson
wrote his first play at the encouragement of his high school director. “I shot-gunned a Monster drink and wrote out a really pitiful script,” explained Johnson, “then a bunch of my friends got together in a classroom and read it together.” He enjoyed the experience so much that he wrote another play his senior year that was produced. Since coming the Athens, Johnson feels that he can write and produce riskier pieces with political messages like Sunshine Town.
Sunshine Town isn’t the only risky work with a political agenda that Johnson has produced recently. His play, Dead Gay Body, a dark farce, highlights how “gay history and tragedy gets swept under the rug by the …. straight-erasure” of society. The piece won the New Georgia Group Grant for 2017.
Fortunately, Johnson has had the chance to have much of his work produced by various organizations. “Having my plays produced helps me to write down everything I want to say, work in a rehearsal environment where I get to have that conversation with other artists, and produce that work so I can share my worldview with other people,” Johnson says. Unfortunately, few students get the opportunity due to the limited platforms.
Johnson works as the season selection committee undergraduate representative. His job is to convey the undergraduate students’ desires to the faculty and for Johnson, this means advocating for more produced student work. “Student work is new work, and new work is the future. Not all of it is good… but it’s all important.” Most of the opportunities provided to undergraduate students involve student-run organizations such as the Thalian Blackfriars, Next Act, The Children’s Theatre Troupe and the Graduate Acting Ensemble who produce student-written plays. The UGA Theatre and Film Department did feature a play festival in the Spring 2016 season, which allowed students to submit written work to be performed. Johnson is hoping for more support in general and will continue to fight for student work with every play he writes. “I think that if a student shows passion and shows work ethic and shows genuine growth, that should be celebrated.”