Texan Mosaic

by BRANDI ORTIZ//News Editor

There are always two sides to a story.

The Lubbock Community Theatre, along with the JT & Margaret Talkington Charitable Foundation, presented their rendition of “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” on Oct. 23 in Lubbock. 

The play, which originated from Robert Louis Stevenson’s novella, tells a story of one man and his “other side.” In “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,” Henry Jekyll is a very well respected researcher and former doctor who hopes to “remove” the evil within himself. During his experiment, Jekyll has not only separated his two sides, but has made his “evil side” a whole person, thus the creation of Edward Hyde.

This theatrical version, adapted by Jeffrey Hatcher and directed by Jay C. Brown, begins one year later in London, 1883, when Hyde (who is mainly played by Michael McKinin) has already made himself apparent to Dr. Jekyll (played by Ray Patterson). In Hatcher’s version, he portrays the story as if Hyde is actually another personality of Jekyll’s.

Hatcher shared, “…Even some notes in the novella [read] that Jekyll has had strange desires and did odd things when he was younger…”

Hatcher lets Hyde be represented through four different actors (Jake Medina, Mason Jock, Michael McKinin, and Sarah Wykowski), each giving a slight change of view of Hyde’s own personality.

In “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,” Hyde even gets the chance at love. His love interest, Elizabeth Jelkes (Savannah Cooper), shows the audience that Hyde might have a pinch of goodness within him. During his encounter with Elizabeth, Hyde even threatens to kill her, but she seems to not be bothered by his threats and even confesses her love for him.

At one point, Dr. Jekyll goes out of his way and tries to protect Elizabeth from the dangers of Hyde. But she is persistent in seeing Hyde. Little does she know, Hyde was right in front of her.

Hatcher’s adaption of the original novella produced really well. Brown did an even better job of bringing the play to life, and every actor gave each character his or her own touch (many of the cast members play several roles, and they do a good job of distinguishing one from another).

Playing the lead of Dr. Henry Jekyll, Ray Patterson, is a sophomore at Texas Tech University. “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” is Patterson’s first community theatre performance. He does an AMAZING job at portraying Dr. Jekyll. He gives the audience a new view on Jekyll. You can tell he has spent sometime with the character, truly becoming Dr. Jekyll.

Gabriel Utterson and Hyde one are performed by Jake Medina, a Lubbock native who has been in several shows at Texas Tech.

Mason Jock, a LCT veteran, returns to portray Richard Enfield and Hyde two.

Hyde three and Dr. H.K. Lanyon were played by McKinin, another LCT veteran. He does a stunning job as Hyde three. Even though he is listed as Hyde three, McKinin played most of the parts of Hyde. His performance gave me chills and made me jump out of my seat.

Wykowski, who plays Poole and Hyde four, also is a newcomer to the LCT. She did such a great job at separating her roles that it took me a little bit to realize she played both Poole and Hyde four.

Lorenzo “Lo” Gauna played Sir Danvers Carew. Gauna is a South Plains College alum with an Associate of Arts Degree in Theatre. Though he has worked with the LCT in the past, it is his first role on stage.

Savannah Cooper, a senior at Texas Tech and newcomer to LCT, took on the role of Elizabeth Jelkes.

There were many actors who played multiple roles: Melody Jenkins Fried; Justin and Heather May; Miguel David “Usnavi” Martinez; Matias Ramirez; and Alexandria Saulnier McKinin.

Each actor gave an astonishing performance which contributed greatly to the production.

The Lubbock Community Theatre’s production of “Dr. Jekyll and Hyde” truly gave me chills and a memorable performance. I give it a 5 out of 5 stars!