{"id":2673,"date":"2015-04-04T19:04:57","date_gmt":"2015-04-05T00:04:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/~reviewing\/?page_id=2673"},"modified":"2015-04-04T19:04:57","modified_gmt":"2015-04-05T00:04:57","slug":"quantums-breakfast-club-entertains","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reviewing\/?page_id=2673","title":{"rendered":"QuantUM’s ‘Breakfast Club’ entertains"},"content":{"rendered":"

Posted April 4, 2015<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

By EMILY JOSEPH<\/p>\n

\u201cJessie\u2019s Girl\u201d is playing on the radio. Students are wearing headbands, scrunchies, Member\u2019s Only jackets and parachute pants. No one has a cell phone.<\/p>\n

Are we back in the 1980s?<\/p>\n

No, just on the set of \u201cThe Breakfast Club.\u201d<\/p>\n

Last week, QuantUM Entertainment at the University of Miami brought the John Hughes classic to campus with four live shows. Quantum strategically timed the play as this year marks the 30th<\/sup> anniversary of the Brat-Pack classic. But regardless of the year, the plot is as relevant and likeable as ever.<\/p>\n

Using a cast of six actors, five students and one intense and rude teacher, the play opens with the students filing into a school library on a Saturday morning in the 1980s preparing for detention.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019ve seen the movie, the clothes immediately give the characters away. If not, you can make relatively correct assumptions about the characters\u2019 personalities based on their respective appearances.<\/p>\n

Claire, played by UM student Stephanie Weetman, arrives on scene first dressed as Molly Ringwald to a T. Wearing a pink skirt, pink shirt, high heels and carrying a purse, you can tell that Claire, \u201cthe princess,\u201d isn\u2019t a frequent face in detention.<\/p>\n

Andrew, played by UM student Evan Forsell, enters as \u201cthe jock,\u201d followed by the \u201cnerd,\u201d Brian, played by UM student Nick DeAngelis and the \u201coutcast\u201d Allison, played by UM student Kelly Zahnen. Finally, \u201cthe criminal,\u201d John (referred to by his last name Bender), played by UM student Alex Kamphorst, makes a grand entrance and claims his usual seat in Saturday detention.<\/p>\n

Instructions from the stern Miss Vernon, played by sophomore Noelle Rode, are to remain silent, stay in the room and for each student to write an essay about who they think they are.<\/p>\n

Bender, breaking nearly every rule, commands the stage while interrogating and harassing the other students. As the so-called criminal with a tough guy persona, he is one of the last to admit his secret: an abusive past. However, he spurs many confessions, albeit predictable, from everyone else.<\/p>\n

While the secrets aren\u2019t surprising, the delivery adds an extra layer of intrigue.<\/p>\n

Claire steadfastly maintains her \u201cgood-girl\u201d image through multiple interrogations and really makes you question if she has a secret. She doesn\u2019t stutter or fleet from her image until the pressure to confess hits boiling point.<\/p>\n

Both Brian\u2019s confession of academic pressure and Allison\u2019s admission of not having friends hit a soft spot. Yet the delivery of Andrew\u2019s secret is less heartwarming and the fake tears didn\u2019t add much to the scene.<\/p>\n

The message of acceptance and breaking stereotypes is well conveyed throughout the entire play. Through inner dialogue as well as conversations, the actors remind you of the pressures in high school. You\u2019ll want to give each character a hug and tell them \u201cthey\u2019ll survive\u201d and then you\u2019ll want to hug yourself for surviving.<\/p>\n

Raw emotion is necessary to make high school students seem legitimate in their feelings. These actors did just that. With a mix of serious and goofy scenes, like rocking out to some classic rock music, they successfully broke high school stereotypes and brought the 1980s to U Miami. If only for a weekend.<\/p>\n