Have you ever seen true history on stage? Have you ever been to a play in which every word you hear has actually been said? To a play where the actors actually play themselves?

Well, The Family (re)Union Project, Macalester’s first play this season, has it all. This innovative project is anything but an ordinary play. Its director, Visiting Assistant Professor of Dramatic Arts Harry Waters Jr., has been a professional actor for 20 years in New York and California. He calls The Family (re) Union Project a “fascinating journey.”

C. Denby Swanson wrote the script, which is based on the personal stories of the actors, shared among themselves over the summer in an online discussion group.

“When you are crying on stage, it is really you crying—not any other character,” cast member Eliza Rasheed ’06 said. “It is the most honest thing I have been in,” Kira Puett ’06 said.

“Early Childhood Memories,” “Told in a Parent’s Voice,” “Medical Madness,” “Pets,” “Family Strife” and “Religion” are some of the title topics on which the script is built. Another significant part of the text comes from writing assignments, individual interviews with the playwright and conversations in rehearsals.

The ten actors, whose real voices will be heard on stage, are Jesse Dorst ’06, Lucas Gerstner ’06, Puett, Rasheed, Christine Lloyd ’06, Kit Hill ’05, Nisreen Dawan ’04, Sarah Meyeroff ’04, Simon Morrison ’04, Zach Nelson ’04. They were chosen in the spring of 2003.

They reunited in August for two weeks of workshop, improvisation, writing and group activities, including two mornings spent at a local day care facility, a morning at Rakhma, a day working with Habitat for Humanity and an evening making dinner for AIDS patients. These activities were intended to mimic or reenact familial types of interactions as well as to be bonding experiences for the cast.

“It was interesting to watch us become one family,” Meyeroff said. Rasheed agreed this unique project has been a strong bonding experience. “Everybody’s stories have become part of me,” she said.

Yet, Rasheed added, being yourself on the stage makes for “one of the hardest experiences I have ever had.”

Both Meyeroff and Rasheed agreed that one of the greatest challenges of playing yourself is that you can only play a certain part of yourself.

“This is me, but I am more than that,” Meyeroff said.

In any case, this process-driven production and examination of self-identity and community is a unique experiment. It is “a different approach to theater,” Meyeroff said.

“It is the most innovative show they have put on since I have been here,” Morrison said.

The director believes that “the more you speak about what is going on in your head, the better informed you are about yourself,” and encourages the audience to stay for the post-show discussion.