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Theater is a form of escapism and a catalyst of joy for Cassius Klingenfuss, 18, a senior at the Sun Valley Community School.

Klingenfuss said its bittersweet that he is close to his last performance, but that hes honored to be cast in Indecent, which will run Thursday, Feb. 8, through Saturday, Feb. 10 at the school.

I am grateful for a lot of these moments and the theater life, especially this show, which is a true example of what theater is, Klingenfuss said.

Indecent was inspired by a 1906 Broadway play titled God of Vengeance. The 1906 play was very controversial because it documented antisemitism and a lesbian relationship, said SVCS Creative Arts Academy Co-Director Kevin Wade.

The play is a meta-theatrical look at why theater matters, how censorship is harmful, how representation of all kinds of love is critical in how we tell stories, and how instrumental Yiddish theater and Jewish culture was in the genesis of contemporary American drama, Wade said.

Wade said Indecent is a play within a play, you laugh a lot and it leaves you in pieces at the end.

This is a real ensemble piece, where a troop of dead actors rise to tell a story of purgatory in a theatrical space, Wade said.

Indecent was written by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Paula Vogel when she was a graduate student at Cornell University in 1973. It was first produced between 2015 and 2016 Off-Broadway, then premiered on Broadway in 2017. Indecent was nominated for three Tony Awards, and won for Best Direction of a Play and Lighting Design, according to the official Broadway website.

"The play is a metatheatrical look at why theater matters, how censorship is harmful, how representation of all kinds of love is critical in how we tell stories."

Kevin Wade

SVCS Creative Arts Academy co-director

When God of Vengeance first premiered on Broadway in 1906, the cast were jailed for indecency, Wade said. Indecent charts the history of an incendiary drama and the path of the artists who risked their careers and lives to perform it.

Its important to make history accessible to everyone and tell about antisemitism and censorship and how it manifests in all aspects of life, said Katie Gardiner, 18, who is also in the show.

Students on stage include Aster Pitts, Cassius Klingenfuss, Elizabeth Dahlen, Elyse Duffield Evan Dittami, Ida Belle Gorby, Ingrid Pratt, Katie Gardiner, Lidia Kaminer, Lizzie Loving, Moxxie Tellez, Phoebe Everett Williams, Steven Serva-Gonzales, Sydney Lovering, Winnifred Dolson and Callan Duke.

Students behind the scenes are Carter Hickey, Kyan Gandhi, Ida Belle Gorby, Moises Bicas-Dolgen, Bridger McBee, Cash Ammons and Reed Fowler.

This is an important show to come to and shows the power of theater, Klingenfuss said.

Wade said that, since there are depictions of antisemitism and violence, including events such as the Holocaust, it is recommended for high-school-age and older audiences.

Tickets range from $7 to $12, with a $2 convenience fee per ticket, and are available online at communityschool.org.

More here:
Community School theater to perform 'Indecent,' a play tackling censorship and antisemitism - Idaho Mountain Express and Guide