Katrina, the girl, not the hurricane, will appear as a character in a play by Jason Tremblay, a third-year master's degree student.
The play, "Katrina: The Girl Who Wanted Her Name Back," will begin rehearsal today, a year after the hurricane hit.
Tremblay said his work centers around Katrina's fight to reclaim her identity as New Orleans and her family suffer the hurricane's devastating aftermath.
"I was always interested in writing about the city of New Orleans," Tremblay said. "Then I was able to focus on one person's story and find a voice there."
K.C. Scharnberg, development assistant for theater and dance, said the script began as Tremblay's thesis, which he submitted in November. The Theatre & Dance Season Production selected the script over four other playwright candidates. The committee chooses which plays will be produced for the year.
A four-person live band will perform on stage, providing transitions and serving as a chorus. He said the band represents generations of New Orleanians and their tribulations before, during and after the storm.
Open auditions were held in the spring to cast the six characters.
The play's set was inspired by photos published throughout the year.
Tremblay said he is pleased the University was able to have Austin director Jonathon Morgan work on the production. Morgan had worked with Tremblay's scripts before in a short workshop, and he was asked to direct the play.
"Morgan is very young and has great ideas about bringing a theater alive," Tremblay said. "We both were musicians, so we get along really well, sharing ideas about how the theater should be presented."
Morgan said he believes the play sends a message of hope and that it is emphasizing both humor and solemnity.
"It is very light, and the characters make the script fun, but it is still about them going through a hard time together," he said. "The script really embodies the spirit of New Orleans while they are going through their tragedy."
Tremblay and Morgan believe the play will reach out to the community with free matinee shows for local schools and ongoing fundraisers in the works.
"This is really one of the first stories to emerge about New Orleans and the disaster," Morgan said. "We will be one of the first communities with such a production, which can reach out to many of the evacuees who relocated to Austin."
Tremblay said he will be working with the cast and crew, participating in all the rehearsals. He will continue to develop the script as Morgan brings it to the stage.
Theater and dance senior Hannah Robinson will be playing the role of the Apparition, a moral guide to the protagonist, Katrina.
"Katrina" will premiere Oct. 13 in the October G. Brockett Theater in the Winship Drama Building on campus. Tickets are $16 for adults and $10 for students. They are available at the door or on the Performing Arts Center Web site www.utpac.org.
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