“It’s the perfect 17th-century rom-com for a 21st-century audience!” said Jeffery Stegall—BJU Theater teacher and director of the upcoming BJU Classic Players production of Edmund Rostand’s Cyrano de Bergerac. This beautiful production in Rodeheaver Auditorium opens Tuesday, November 19, and highlights the talents of several BJU alumni.
Jay Herr, 1979 Interpretive Speech major, plays Montfleury, the pompous actor foolish enough to cross wits with Cyrano. Herr said, “I came to auditions at my daughter’s behest.” He and his grown children love the theater offerings in Greenville. When his children heard about Cyrano they pushed Jay to try out.
Jay Herr as Montfleury
Stegall said of Herr, “This may be the longest comeback performance in Classic Players history.” Herr played Puck 47 years ago in BJU’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and he is enjoying the chance to get back onto Rodeheaver’s big stage.
Herr has seen the growth of the production process, “Things are different. We were predominantly just interpretive. It’s great being with the students. Even in the green room as they’re chatting, and I hear little snippets of their acting classes and things that we never had as students.” The production also features recent grads Isaac Stephens (2018, Cross-Cultural Studies; 2024, Graphic Design) and Kristin Post (2013, MA in Dramatic Arts). They’re both looking forward to the electricity of opening night. Stephens, who plays the lead role of Cyrano, said, “Opening night always brings a new energy. We finally get to perform with an audience!”
Post, who plays the easily distracted Chaperone, adds, “It’s the final missing piece of the puzzle for theatre. The excitement and anticipation are palpable.”
Post loves performing, but she also uses the transferable skills she learned in her theater classes every day. “My theatre major gave me a fantastic foundation for acting, directing, and scriptwriting. But studying theatre also helps me understand and empathize with people better.” Stephens’ Cross-Cultural Studies degree prepared him for missions or other international leadership. “Much of what I studied was how to bridge gaps between people who may think and view the world differently. Done well, theatre communicates truth while helping us understand different perspectives.”
Isaac Stephens as Cyrano
Stephens’ role in Cyrano shows the value of this scale of production in a liberal arts environment. The cast and crew represent 13 majors ranging from Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and Engineering, to English and Mathematics. Josh Watts, a Composition major from the Music Department said, “I came to BJU on the recommendation of my sister because I was looking for a school that had a good music program and that was active in theatre.” Communication major Logan Marine said, “God has blessed the world with poetry, prose, singing, and acting so that we can recognize that He created and sustains the world. Bob Jones constantly reminds me of God’s power and goodness by putting together incredible productions.”
In The Abolition of Man, C. S. Lewis (not a BJU alum) said, “The task of the modern educator is not to cut down jungles but to irrigate deserts. The right defense against false sentiments is to inculcate just sentiments.” This is the role of storytelling in the world and it’s value to believers. Or as David Schwingle, BJU Theater professor and BJU’s artistic director of fine arts productions, who plays Count de Guiche, put it, “The performing arts nourish students culturally, morally, ethically; they train students not just to recognize truth, but to love it.”
David Schwingle as de Guiche
Tickets are still available to see this swashbuckling production live at 7:30 on November 19, 20, or 21. Purchase your tickets in person at the campus box office or online. To learn more about Cyrano and its history at BJU, check out the SMART Guide for the production.
