NGU News


NGU Theatre Presents “Reap the Whirlwind” February 9-11

Posted on: February 3, 2023
By Billy Cannada, billy.cannada@ngu.edu

reap-the-whirlwind-02Tigerville, SC (February 2, 2023) North Greenville University (NGU) will present three performances of “Reap the Whirlwind” February 9-11 at The Billingsley Theatre in Tigerville.

The story follows Jon David Brody as he takes extreme measures to reclaim his son, who has disavowed his family’s religion after learning the theory of evolution in his high school biology class.

“It’s going to be entertaining,” said Dr. Web Drake, Dean of the College of Communication and Fine Arts at NGU. “The cast is great. They’ve done an excellent job with it. It will be different, but the material itself is educational. It is intriguing and engaging, and hopefully, it will inspire people.”

Drake created the show more than 15 years ago and has directed performances of it at Mississippi College and Union University.

“I’m excited to be able to bring this show to NGU. North Greenville has an incredible theatre program,” Drake said. “The professors have set an incredibly high bar. I’m excited to be a small part of it.”

Drake said “Reap the Whirlwind” will offer a unique experience for attendees.

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“This is going to be a stage reading, which we’ve never had here before,” he said. “It’s a little bit different. There are no costumes, no makeup, no set. It’s just the cast doing an interpretive reading. It’s theatre of the mind. All the emphasis is on the plot, the characters and the dialogue. This has been a great piece to experiment with because it’s so intellectual in nature. Performing it as a staged reading clears the way for the audience to be able to focus on the dialogue.”

The cast features Josh Gasdia, Caleb Wright, Kat Liederbach, Keely Lyons, Isabelle Western, Dylan Thompson, Chappie Stanley, Chloe Holmes, Alyse Barrett, William Fulton, and Logan Stewart. The production team for “Reap the Whirlwind” includes Jenna Howard (stage manager), and Renee Drake (assistant director).

Although his original piece is now more than a decade old, Drake said the subject matter couldn’t be more relevant.

“The last 40-50 years have seen a complete secularization of our public schools. The way that biology is taught is a small part of it, but it stands in for the whole. This really is about Christians recognizing what’s going on and pushing back.”

Free tickets for NGU students are available with an NGU ID at The Billingsley Theatre box office on Feb. 6. Adult tickets for “Reap the Whirlwind” are $15, and child/student tickets are $8. Shows being at 7:30 p.m. nightly.

To purchase tickets, visit go.ngu.edu/reap-the-whirlwind.

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