On Saturday October 27, senior musical theatre major Philip Stock performed his original one-man show “Continue Approach” at the Jubilee Directing Lab.
Stock began working on the show back in January. “I took a playwriting class last semester where I developed the first act, which was performed in April. Over the summer I made some changes to what I had, and wrote a second act,” he said.
Stock led the audience through a series of emotions with captivating storytelling and by working through real-life issues through his characters. He created the show using questions he constantly asks himself, such as why relationships fail and what it means to be intimate with another person.
“In this show, two men reflect on a life-changing evening they shared a month prior. They confront their own beliefs about relationships, intimacy and navigating a same-sex romantic life in a heteronormative world as they determine how to move forward after that night,” Stock said of the show.
While Stock was putting together this project, he was still a college student with responsibilities at the same time.
“I think the biggest challenge was making it all happen on top of a full class load and a main stage rehearsal process. That, and knowing when to approach the work as the writer and when to do so as an actor,” he said.
Stock said he is bursting with pride from all of the positive feedback he has received.
“One thing people keep saying is that although these characters talk a lot about how they experience the world as gay men, they find the situations relatable. That the sentiments expressed are things they have also felt, but hadn’t quite put into words,” Stock said.
Senior music theatre major Alejandria Solis found herself compelled by the piece from the moment it began.
“’Continue Approach’ was a refreshingly honest piece on modern day romances in the gay community. It touches on universal topics that are relatable to anyone who has ever been romantically involved with anyone, and it is written so beautifully the words themselves stuck with me for days after,” Solis shared. “I only wish I could’ve seen it again. It is objectively the best piece of original theatre I have ever seen on the D Lab stage.”
In the future, Stock hopes to submit this play into some Fringe Festivals for new works across the country. He would also like to expand the show and rather than have himself playing both of the two characters, have another actor.
As for his future career, “this year I’m auditing for a lot of regional work and cruise lines with the goal of booking a traveling gig for a bit or moving straight to New York. It sort of depends how the cards fall,” Stock said.
Stock shared his favorite line: “Why can’t love be something that you can just feel for another human without having a past or a future attached to it?”
