Clark University's Columbinus:

Pulse Magazine

By Rachel Shuster

Photo taken by Louie Despres
and digitally manipulated by
Derek Ring

Columbinus is a play sparked by the tragic events that occurred in April, 1999 at Columbine High School in Jefferson County, Colorado. The theatrical interpretation of the massacre premiered in 2005 at the Round House Theatre in Maryland, and explores the psychological conflict of alienation, hostility and social pressure that is present in every high school. Created by the United States Theatre Project and written by Stephen Karam and PJ Paparelli, Columbinus integrates excerpts from discussions with survivors, parents and community leaders in the town of Littleton, and even uses diaries and home video footage to reveal the dark reality of some adolescents.

Rob Urbinati, Director of Clark University’s production of Columbinus, is Director of New Play Development at Queens Theatre in the Park, where he oversees the Immigrant Voices Project, a new play program which develops plays by writers who represent the diverse demographic of New York City. Urbinati’s resume includes writing and directing various plays from Oregon all the way to our very own Worcester, MA. His past Worcester credits include Clark University’s production of As Bees in Honey Drown. Urbinati, a Massachusetts native, has now made his way back to Clark University to direct this hard-hitting and powerful play through connections made with Gino Dilorio of the Clark Theatre Program.

Dilorio, speaking about Urbaniti, says, “We’re very excited to have Rob Urbinati direct at Clark. Rob’s a gifted director and playwright, he’s also an excellent researcher. We’re lucky to be able to bring a New York director in to work with students on such an important play. And Rob is especially good with young actors. When working on a piece at the university, a director has to be a teacher as well. We have majors working alongside non-majors, this kind of experience is very important to the training of our actors and technical staff as well. It’s not just about mounting the show, it’s a learning experience at many levels. And we're sure a piece like Columbinus will resonate with the community, both on and off-campus.”

As for the events at Columbine High School becoming a theatrical play, Urbinati says, “After a horrible event, it is interesting to see how society deals with it. These issues affect different people in different ways, and are still important to this day."

To describe the play, Urbinati explains that, “The first half of the show is like any high school, with the different "types" you find in high school - the jocks, the nerds, etc. It doesn’t identify the students beyond these "stereotypes. The point is that this could be any high school. The second half is when it gets more specific, and the two characters of Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold are revealed.”

Although putting on this play is an intense experience, Urbinati is confident in his cast, his crew and all those involved, and feels strongly that this show will be a success and important for all to see. “The nature of the material demands that this will be a heay experience for the cast. My goals are to have the students understand how to relate to their fellow actors, to collaborate, and to create something that grabs the audience. Columbine is still a hot topic, and the challenges and dangers of that event haven’t changed since 1999,” Urbinati explains.

As director, Urbinati finds there are many challenges to presenting this material. "Rather than presenting Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold solely as villains, we need to try to understand them. “Presenting them as villains would be too easy,” he says. “We have to walk the line between understanding them and sympathizing with them. It’s difficult.”

Urbinati also explains that the play “…takes on a lot of myths about what really happened. A lot of what people think happened – didn’t. For example, a lot of people think that the two boys were bullied, and that's why they did what they did, but in many instances, they were the bullies.”

As for the meaning of the title Columbinus, Urbinati notes that it really has never been explained. “At first I believed that it sounded Greek, like a contemporary Greek tragedy. Then I thought more about the ‘us’ as the last two letter, and it's like a play on words, because the events of what happened relates to all of us,” Urbinati explains.

Despite the serious content, the play is not solely intended for a specific age group. “The play is meant to be put on by students, and seen by students, etc,” Urbinati says. However, the play certainly touches on adult themes like sexuality and violence.

There is also a “high tech” quality to the production. Urbinati explains that “The show uses a lot of technical devices to tell the story.” Besides the video footage, there are emails, instant messages, voiceovers, projections, etc. In one scene, you will see two students typing at computers. There is no dialogue, you just hear "instant message' sound, and on the projector screen you see what they are typing. “It is a very contemporary means of storytelling. The show is more high tech than many traditional shows, and reflects how students communicate,” Urbinati says.

With auditions completed, Urbinati is prepared for the emotional rollercoaster that he and his cast and crew may experience while creating this show. “It is a concern - how the students will cope with the emotional issues the play examines. We have to explore the violent, raw and sad events, yet at the same time, we have to find a way to distance ourselves in order to perform the play effectively, because the events are so horrifying. There is no easy answer to how to cope, but at the very least, we must take it seriously. There are big challenges, and I want to be sure we stay faithful the show and not get caught up in the horror of it. As an ensemble, we will support each other and take it day by day,” he says.