This review was written by a TeenTix KC teen who is learning about arts journalism through the Press Corps, which provides teens with training and tools to respond to their arts experiences. TeenTix KC seeks to engage teens in the arts and amplify their voices. This may be the first time this teen has publicly expressed their opinion about an arts experience. Thank you for reading and supporting this teen’s development as an arts journalist.
“Exactly! Protect your child by educating yourself!” — Eureka Day quote
Eureka Day is a play about the argument surrounding how important vaccines are. The play uses the setting of a private school in 2018 in Berkeley, California that is dealing with an outbreak of Mumps and a comedic spin of satire to make an argument about why you should take the time to learn and seriously consider vaccinations.
All of the actors are amazing and had powerful moments that made me look up and revel in the performance; but in every great play there’s a dark side, no matter how comedic. While most of the play is lighthearted, it includes profanity, child death, and depictions of racism. The children who die are those of the principal characters. Those characters are amazingly well-written, but if I had to choose a favorite, I would say Don, the principal, played by John Rensenhouse.
The play follows the Eureka Day PTA through a time of a substantial health crisis in their area. The PTA is composed of four parents and Don. Among the parents, there is one new mom to the school who vaccinates, one dad who vaccinated on a delayed schedule, and two non-vaccinating moms. The play allows each person to clearly share the reasoning behind their thoughts. Don tries his hardest to keep everyone in order as the story progresses. Carina, played by Teisha M. Bankson and Suzanne, played by Cinnamon Schultz (who are both on the PTA), slowly have tensions grow between them, mirroring real-world debates. During this time, two of the PTA members have their children stricken with the disease. When the principal receives a letter from the health department warning of the outbreak of the Mumps virus, the PTA struggles with what to do and finally decides to have a live stream to talk about it with all the Eureka Day School parents. To show the audience the comments during the PTA Zoom meeting, the stage crew removed the posters on the wall and projected the Zoom comments onto the wall. This portion of the show is my favorite because, as you can imagine, parental comments during a crisis almost always show up in a way where everyone thinks they know best.
A conclusion is eventually reached in the best interests of most families at Eureka Day, but it shows the aftermath of a decision that doesn’t please everyone. As with all rule changes, there is no way to make everyone happy.
I thoroughly enjoyed this show, and recommend it to everyone who is able to see humor in bureaucracy. I know I’ll be back to see it a second time before the run is over. Eureka Day runs now through September 27. You can use your TeenTix KC pass to see this show for $10 for two tickets.
Reviewed by TeenTix KC Press Corps member Keeley Ferguson
TeenTix KC is a KC Studio initiative building a brighter future for our region by empowering young people to take an active role in shaping their arts community as audience members, critics, influencers, advocates, patrons and leaders. Any 13-19 year-old can become a TeenTix KC member by downloading a free pass which enables them to buy $5 tickets to participating arts venues across metro KC. Teens are encouraged to become critics and influencers by writing reviews and creating reels about the arts they experience using their TeenTix KC passes.
