More Than Just a Night At The Cabin

EAST PEORIA — Audience got a real thriller with the latest production playing at Illinois Central College.

 On April 18, the ICC Arts and Communication Department Theatre Program presented “Humpty Dumpty” in the studio theatre of the Performing Arts Center.  The story focus on four friends who decided to stay a week at a cabin to get away from it all without using technology, but when all of a sudden something happens and it makes them stay a bit longer than they’ve had planned.

“This play had a bit of everything from drama to comedy and even thrilling that had me saying ‘wow,’” said Johanna Carter, 45, of East Peoria, about the play.

The setting of the production was set in a half of one side of a cabin, that’s like looking into an open dollhouse, with furniture, kitchen, and upstairs and a fire place. It was like watching a bottle episode of a television show; everything was in this one setting.

The lighting of this production was spooky as the lights gone dimmed during some of the dramatic thrilling scenes and also helped the audience tell from what was night and day. Also with the support of music it added some dramatic and thrilling scenes to it's storyline.

There were a few characters that really stood out. The character of Max, played by Ryan Groves, was the calm, cool and the reasonable person until near the end. He had some real intense scenes with his wife Nicole, played by Arianna Morgan. For example, when Nicole was angry at Troy, played by Ethan Johnson, about not washing the dishes the right way, she tries to do them and cuts her hand. She gets upset, loses it and really wants to leave.

Another character was Spoon, played by Hannah Gidcumb, was another that stood out in this production. Spoon is this sweet, quiet and wants to just have fun but all that seems to be gone and find out a little bit more of her character.

For one, she can’t drink any alcohol because she will go wild and also when Troy and her get into and he yell about her past life. But we see her stick up for herself and fight back or yell back at Troy. And another one is when she gets a bit close to Max whenever they’re alone and both Troy and Nicole are gone.

“I felt really sorry for her,” said Carter. “When I saw her yelling back at (Troy) I felt relieved that she told him.”

And there was Nat, the maintenance worker of the house, played by Logan Henderson, was probably the most interesting character throughout the story. He first comes in and fixes the stove and soon when the power goes out, he comes by and gives the gang food, water and other supplies along with updates about the power outage. Nat gets real nice to everyone even Nicole and they have a couple of moments that turn out to be romantic. From funny, thoughtful and has an anger side once you see it.

There were a couple of mistakes during the performance as a couple of actors stumbled on a couple of words but they didn’t lose their character.

One audience member mentions that in the story that some of the things that happen weren’t realistic. He mention that when one of the characters put a bottle of wine in the freezer, also the sun shouldn’t rise from the west to the east and that when Max got the peanut butter out of the cabinet that there was no jar.

“Humpty Dumpty” is a psychological dramatic thriller that deals with survival of the fittest when it comes to something that their not use of not having with them. As the classic nursery rhythm goes" Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall. Humpty Dumpty had a great fall. All the king's horses and all the king's men couldn't put Humpty Dumpty back together again."

And in this case, a night at the cabin turned out to more of a fall than expected.