“The Importance of Being Earnest,” performed by RWU Theatre, debuts this weekend in the Performing Arts Center.

The show is based on someone who is lying, and the title of the play has a double meaning. It shows not only the importance of being earnest, but a character who lies and says his name is Earnest, since his love interest will only marry him because of his fake name. In reality, his name is Jake. His friend, Algernon, also takes up the name of Earnest, causing more chaos to ensue. 

“The Importance of Being Earnest” is a comedy, which the actors said is harder to perform than serious plays because it’s difficult to get the audience back when they stop laughing. But, on the other hand, if the laughing stops then it is dead.

Director Jeffrey Martin expressed pride toward his actors’ hard work and dedication.

“Actors have this image of being slackers,” Martin said. “But these kids are working, they’re coming in six days a week, for four hours a day. That’s not being slackers.”  

Seniors Jenna Arkontaky, Alex Bowden and Will Jaworski spoke about being involved with the production. They are each working on their senior projects and could choose whichever role they wanted for the project.

Bowden and Jaworski took on roles as cast members while Arkontaky took the backstage route as stage manager. It is evident that each of the seniors are passionate about the play. 

Just like Martin, the seniors expressed their excitement to finally have an audience to witness their hard work. They are practically bursting at the seams to meet their audiences and see their reactions. The cast has been working hard since the second week of the semester. 

Some difficulties they often face in terms of shows is scheduling, which gets more hectic since the cast is putting on shows while simultaneously rehearsing for the next one. Since this is their first showing, they haven’t run into too many bumps in the road, but scheduling could be an issue when it comes time for their second and third shows.

The show dates include Nov. 15-17 and Nov. 21- 23. All of the showings begin at 7:30 p.m., except for one show on Nov. 17 which starts at 2 p.m. The cost varies. For students, admission is only $5 but it is $15 for the general public. 

Make sure to keep an eye out for the production, as it is sure to be entertaining! The play was highly praised by the cast and director, not just for having humorous actions, but for reading with humor on paper.