The Birds to be performed at USM Department of Theatre this month
The University of Southern Mississippi
Students will be taking part in a play of The Birds at the University of Southern Mississippi Department of Theatre, Russell Hall, USM Gorham Campus, from 21st February to 2nd March 2025.
The play has been adapted from Daphne du Maurier's short story by Conor McPherson and is directed by Liz Carlson.
Interestingly, the plot varies quite considerably from the original story and, indeed, from Alfred Hitchcock's adaptation to film. In this version, two strangers take refuge from the relentless masses of attacking birds in an isolated house, where they find no comfort or peace, with a lack of electricity, little food and a nearby neighbour watching them. Another person seeking shelter arrives with news from the outside world, but this only serves to destabilise the balance in the house, building a level of paranoia in the house to match that of the fear of the birds outside.
The audience will experience the threat of the birds in subtle ways, and the feeling of claustrophobia the strangers experience in their confined space is exacerbated by the fact that the audience of 40 people all share space on the stage.
Director Liz Carlson says that the play defies the audience's expectations while still creating those visceral feelings that are brought out by both Daphne du Maurier's short story and Hitchcock's film.