Juliet Monize as Agnes and Myles Robbe as Miles rehearse a fight sequence for “She Kills Monsters.” Courtesy photo
The USM Department of Theatre brings audiences back to Russell Hall with the funny, moving and adventure-packed “She Kills Monsters” by Qui Nguyen from Nov 12-21.
It’s 1995 — “Gangsta’s Paradise,” “Waterfalls” and “Creep” are at the top of the charts. But for Agnes, none of that matters because her little sister, Tilly is gone — or is she? Armed with her sister’s last Dungeons and Dragons campaign, Agnes now has to navigate the secret world Tilly created to find out who she really was when she was alive. Bursting with homicidal fairies, nasty ogres, and 90s pop culture references, “She Kills Monsters” is an homage to the geek and warrior within us all.
Megan Tripaldi, the show’s director and USM Theatre alum, says “She Kills Monsters” has a universal appeal that audiences will love.
“Everyone experiences being a teenager,” Tripaldi said. “As silly and larger-than-life as this show can get, the real power behind it is how it shows us that as alone as we felt when we were that age, we never really were.”
USM theater student Juliet Moniz plays the lead protagonist Agnes. “Everything about Agnes Evans is average. Her clothes, her cheerleading, her boyfriend,” she said. “Until her sister suddenly dies and she is thrust into a world of grief, guilt, and Dungeons and Dragons. For the first time in her life, Agnes is an outsider and the geeks are in charge. She must learn how to fight and accept those who aren’t afraid of being different.”
“She Kills Monsters” opens Nov. 12 and runs through Nov. 21. All performances take place on the USM Gorham campus in historic Russell Hall. This show addresses themes of bullying and homophobia and contains depictions of violence. There is use of flashing lights.
To purchase tickets, find information or request special accommodations, visit usm.maine.edu/theatre, or call the USM Theatre box office at (207) 780-5151.
USM Theatre requires masks for all audience members and vaccination or proof of a negative PCR test within 48 hours of the performance or a negative rapid test within 12 hours of the performance. Testing requirements include children under 12.
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