Students Produce Original Production 'Scab'

Marist's original production, ‘Scab’ Credit: Tiffany Sung '25

The Marist Theatre Program put on “Scab” as their experimental production this year. “Scab,” written by Sheila Callaghan, is a dramatic comedy about two roommates who form an unexpected friendship while juggling graduate school, relationships and self-exploration. Despite their strong connection, roommates Anima, referred to as Annie, and Christa undergo various hardships that lead to a tragic ending. 

Directed by Ashley Caturano alongside the rest of the team, “Scab” was a brilliantly executed show. Even with only six actors, the cast brought the story to life. 

Anima, played by Alex McCrary ‘23, said, “Anima was definitely hard to fully understand as a character at first. From the moment you meet her, she spills her entire life story, drawing the audience in and making them understand where she is coming from and her mental state. Before even starting to memorize lines, I read the play multiple times just to fully understand Annie as a character. In playing her, I tried really hard to make sure nothing felt inauthentic and the audience would understand her. Overall, she was so much fun to play, even during the more emotional parts because I got to play around with how she spoke and carried herself.”

Vice President of The Marist Theatre Program and director of “Scab” Ashley Caturano ‘23 said, “Throughout the story, Anima is essentially having a mental crisis and my concept was that she would process her emotions through her art, theater. The scenic space was divided into a black box theater and an apartment. All action that occurs outside of Annie’s safe space, her apartment, is presented as though it were just a performance. The choice of thrust staging (audience on three sides) aims for intimacy and closeness as if you were sitting in the apartment or college theater class with our characters. This performance was really exciting and special because the audience was seated on stage with the actors. This style of theater has not been presented in my four years at Marist.”

Credit: Tiffany Sung '25

The Marist Theatre Program is one of the most active clubs on campus. Between acting, designing and managing, Marist Theatre offers a wide variety of opportunities to become involved. Marist Theatre produces several shows each year, varying from musicals to children's theater productions. 

“Working on the show and getting to know the cast was such a great experience. This was my first time working on a show at Marist and I’m looking forward to working on shows in the future,” run crew member Sophia Seriale ‘26 said.

While the play was a success, it was not without its challenges. “I think the biggest challenge in putting up this show is the experimental nature of the show itself,” Caturano said. “The production team had to problem-solve to ensure we had adequate stage and audience space, as well as ensuring the sound and lighting were appropriate for the audience's senses. It was definitely challenging to stage a performance where people were not always going to see the front of the actors 100% of the time.”

Despite some initial obstacles, the audience was wildly pleased. “The show was executed extremely well and I was very impressed by the cast’s ability to display such intense emotions with such limited space and scenery,” audience member Katie Marrin ‘26 said. “The actors did an amazing job portraying the complex backstories of each character. I thoroughly enjoyed this show and am excited to see what Marist Theatre does next.”

Caturano reflected on the impact the show had on both the audience and herself. ““Scab” deals with topics, such as death, domestic abuse and sexuality, as a comedic drama. It was extremely important to me that the comedic points provided relief and laughter, but did not take away from the seriousness and weight of the purpose of the show,” she said. “All in all, I thought it was a truly beautiful piece, and I am so grateful for my cast and crew for bringing this to life.”

With a job well done, the Marist community eagerly awaits the Theatre Program’s next performance.