It's a hot summer afternoon in New York in 1954 and an African-American 16-year-old boy is on trial for first-degree murder. You and 11 other white males have been confined to a 16 by 20 foot jury room, faced with the burden of deciding this child's fate.
There are two witnesses who identify the 16-year-old as his father's murderer. In addition to the witnesses, the child's knife was found to be the murder weapon. As a juror, you are faced with one decision: guilty or not guilty? What seems like an open-and-shut case becomes a long, drawn-out deliberation, because one of the 12 jurors believes there is a "reasonable doubt." ASU students can now take part in that decision.
The Roundabout Theatre Company has brought its longest-running Broadway smash, "Twelve Angry Men," to Gammage Auditorium.
The cast of "Twelve Angry Men" gave an authentic and organic performance that seemed to transcend time on Tuesday evening.
Each of the 12 jurors built dynamic characters who represented 12 different backgrounds. Julian Gamble, a Broadway veteran and television guest star, tugged at the audience's heart strings as Juror No. 3, a father with unresolved issues between himself and his son.
Whether it was the witty writing of Reginald Rose or Mark Morettini's quick delivery, Juror No. 7 gave a comic relief to the audience that set off several laugh-out-loud moments.
The attention to detail in the costuming and set design was incredible. Each of the 12 jurors piled into the deliberation, and as they turned their backs to the audience, sweat could be seen soaked into their jackets. As the sunlight shined through the dirty windows of the jury room, it was evident the room was not frequently maintained. Details like the sweat stains and dirty windows made "Twelve Angry Men" immediately engaging and memorable.
The production was plagued by microphone troubles throughout the performance on Tuesday. Although the audience cringed each time there was static or an outage with the microphones, the technical troubles did not faze the professional cast.
"Twelve Angry Men" is showing at Gammage Auditorium until Feb. 24.
Reach the reporter at: theresa.bloom@asu.edu.
