This past weekend, Tartan Theatre had their opening, and closing, performances of their winter double-features; The Importance of Being Earnest and Proof. The seven dollars I paid to see both shows was more than worth it.

The Importance of Being Earnest had a run time of about an hour, not too long and not too short. I had a lot of friends star in the show which also heightened my excitement to see it.

Senior Diego Paredes Garcia played the lead role of Jack/Earnest and it was his first show, his performance was amazing. He had this sense of confidence and a huge aura of professionalism, I could not even tell it was his first performance ever.

Some moments of the show were jaw-dropping. Not only was it a humor show that had me trying to contain my laughter in my seat, but there was a down spiral of drama which kept me engaged as well. I felt like I was sitting in a taping of a soap opera on the edge of my seat not knowing what to expect next.

The seating was also set on the stage which made the story feel more personal and emotional was another important aspect of why this show was so great. I could see the actors’ faces and could almost empathize with them while drama was occurring. As someone who is usually on stage performing and not sitting in the audience, I could understand how challenging these characters must have been to embody and the dialogue was challenging to remember but all of the actors did an amazing job.

Though I liked the show, the only factor that was ‘bad’ was my inability to understand what was going on during the first half of the show, which might be a personal problem. The setting takes place in the 1800’s so the language is a little different. I didn’t fully understand what was going on until the second half of the show where the pieces started to fit together.

The only days these shows were performed was January 29th and 30th, so unfortunately if you weren’t able to snag a ticket, you missed your chance. However Tartan Theatre will be back in the spring with Legally Blonde The Musical! Come support the actors there!