There's plenty to cheer about as Be Aggressive comes to CU stage

Don't miss the regional premiere of the witty play Be Aggressive by emerging playwright Annie Weisman. Two cheerleaders, from left, Laura (played by Kristen Frazier) and Leslie (played by Jacqueline Koppell) learn life lessons during their quest to be the best cheerleaders in California. Be Aggressive opens Oct. 22 and runs through Nov. 2. Thomas Hoebbel

B-E A-G-G-R-E-S-S-I-V-E. That's the call of cheerleading camps everywhere and the title of a witty and energetic play by emerging playwright Annie Weisman. Be Aggressive will begin its regional premiere Oct. 22 on Cornell's Schwartz Center for the Performing Arts stage. Performances run through Nov. 2.

Weisman, considered one of the country's most talented young playwrights, has written an edgy and comic social commentary on the lives of today's teenage girls. Set in image-obsessed Southern California, the story revolves around cheerleaders Laura and Leslie. After Laura's mother is killed, the teenager is left to care for her precocious little sister and her dependent, grieving father. The play takes a darkly comedic turn when the girls conspire to better themselves by running off to a cheerleading training program with self-help overtones called the Spirit Institute of the South.

"These girls are dedicated to 'cheer' with tribal-like intensity, and the play explores that with delicious satire but also real compassion," said guest director and alumna Sarah Stern '97. "The freeway is an apt metaphor for a culture that paves over everything; like the fault lines that rumble beneath their California beach town, something is shifting inside these girls, and cheerleading allows them to connect with and express deep-rooted emotions."

Currently the associate artistic director of the Vineyard Theatre in New York City, Stern has directed at Voice and Vision Theatre, the New York Fringe Festival, HB Playwrights and the Exiles Theatre in Northern Ireland, among others.

Be Aggressive's cast features the talents of both Cornell students and Equity actors. Laura and Leslie are played by undergraduates Kristen Frazier and Jacqueline Koppell. Laura's parents are Cornell Resident Professional Teaching Associates Jan Rogge and Marc Moritz. Supporting roles are played by students Sara Clemens, Gia Crovatin, Frankie Goldstein and Kirsten Kollender.

The resident scenic artist at the Schwartz Center, Christa Seekatz, combines sun, ocean and freeways into a unique set. Student Amy Bravo, selected for the Advanced Undergraduate Theatre Program, designed the costumes for Be Aggressive. Rounding out the design team are Dan Hall (lighting) and John Bracewell (sound).

Be Aggressive opens Wednesday, Oct. 22, at 8 p.m. Evening performances continue Oct. 23-26 and Oct. 29-Nov. 1. Afternoon matinees will be offered Oct. 26 and Nov. 1-2 at 2 p.m. Tickets are $8 (students/seniors) and $10 (general) in advance. For tickets and information, call or visit the box office in the Schwartz Center for the Performing Arts, 430 College Ave., 12:30-5:30 p.m, weekdays; 254-ARTS.