Play Commemorates 10th Anniversary Of 9/11 Attacks

Sep. 02, 2011

Michelle Eubanks, UNA, at media@una.edu, 256.765.4392 or 256.606.2033

FLORENCE, Ala. - A New York City fire captain and former journalist had little in common before the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, but in Anne Nelson's play "The Guys," the characters found a way to connect in the wake of tragedy. The Department of Music and Theatre at the University of North Alabama will present two performances of "The Guys" Sept. 9 at 3 and 7:30 p.m. in the Guillot University Center Performance Center. Free to the public, the play will commemorate the 10th anniversary of 9/11. "One of the excellent things about this play is that it has no political agenda," said Dr. David Ruebhausen, associate professor of theater and director of the play. "It is such a human, honest depiction of two people and what they were going through in New York at that time." UNA associate professor of English Lesley Peterson will play Joan, an editor and former journalist who wants to help after the 9/11 attacks but doesn't know where to start during the relief efforts. She meets Nick, a fire captain, and is hired to write eulogies for his lost colleagues and loved ones who died on 9/11. Charlton James, associate professor of theater at UNA, plays Nick, and said his character doesn't view himself as a hero or realize how important he or his colleagues are to the community. James was living in New York City when 9/11 occurred and said "The Guys" has a special place in his heart and is helping him through the healing process 10 years after the terrorist attacks. "(My character) is a man in America, and is simple, yet so complicated," he said. "At first, you see the simpleness of him, and then you begin to see his layers and how complicated he is. You begin to see how difficult it is to be a fireman and to sacrifice your life to help other people." "The Guys" was first performed Dec. 4, 2001, and starred Sigourney Weaver and Bill Murray. The play has been performed in 48 states and across the world. Ruebhausen said the play helps people of all ages and backgrounds take a different perspective of the 9/11 events. "It is accessible to anybody," he said. "It's not political, not high brow, not artsy. It's accessible, human interaction" For more information, contact the Department of Music and Theatre at 256-765-4516.

About The University of North Alabama

The University of North Alabama is an accredited, comprehensive regional state university offering undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degree programs through the colleges of Arts, Sciences, and Engineering; the Sanders College of Business and Technology; Education and Human Sciences; and the Anderson College of Nursing and Health Professions. Occupying a 130-acre campus in a residential section of Florence, Alabama, UNA is located within a four-city area that also includes Muscle Shoals, Sheffield, and Tuscumbia. UNA Athletics, a renowned collegiate athletics program with seven (7) Division II National Championships, is now a proud member of NCAA Division I as part of the Atlantic Sun and United Athletic conferences. The University of North Alabama is an equal opportunity institution and does not discriminate in the admission policy on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, disability, age, or national origin. For more: una.edu and una.edu/unaworks/.