"This is an original piece developed through improvisation by our students with the Gaiety School in Ireland," said Stephen Hudson-Mairet, adjunct assistant professor in the College of Communication's Department of Performing Arts.,”Hands will be smashed, tongues cut out, dissenters silenced and injustice confronted on the stage of the Helfaer Theatre tonight, with the opening of the drama "Poor Tom."

"This is an original piece developed through improvisation by our students with the Gaiety School in Ireland," said Stephen Hudson-Mairet, adjunct assistant professor in the College of Communication's Department of Performing Arts.

According to Hudson-Mairet, the work is a collaboration between Marquette's Department of Performing Arts, Irish director Patrick Sutton of Gaiety School of Acting in Dublin and Irish playwright Martin McGuire.

In the summer of 2006, Sutton came to the United States to begin work on "Poor Tom," and this past summer members of the Marquette cast and crew went to Dublin to expand on the script and directing, he said.

Tonight is the first time the show will be performed in the United States, Hudson-Mairet said, although an earlier version has been performed in Ireland.

"It's a brand new production with all the pros and cons that come with it," he said.

Bonnie Auguston, a junior in the College of Communication who plays Angela in "Poor Tom," said a big difference in this production is that it is not a classic work, so the majority of the audience will be hearing the story for the first time.

"It's weird that very few people in the audience will be familiar with the play," Auguston said. "We have to draw them in right away or they will be lost."

Working with playwright Martin Maguire on the script of "Poor Tom" was another interesting experience, Auguston said.

"When doing a classic, Shakespeare won't be around to ask 'What did you mean by that line?'" she said. "The process itself changed because we have an original work."

The content of "Poor Tom" is just as novel to the Helfaer Theatre as the original play writing process was.

"This play is different from "She Loves Me" and the other plays we've done at Marquette in the sense of its sheer, gruesome, bloody violence," said Jack Jostes, a senior in the College of Communication, who plays the character Luke. "Throats are slit left and right, hands are smashed, tongues are cut out…It's bloody and gruesome and really, really good and you'll like it a lot. Bring your mom."

Yet "Poor Tom" does not indulge in gratuitous violence; Hudson-Mairet maintains that what the cast considers to be pressing issues are at the core of the play.

"You can expect an exciting show," Hudson-Mairet said. "This is something the students want to say, a student-driven message."

Hudson-Mairet said asking the audience to raise questions is part of his job description.

"We don't want to disrupt people, but we hope to make people think," Hudson-Mairet said. "That's the nature of why we're here at Marquette, to make people think about the greater world."

Amelia Figg-Franzoi, a junior in the College of Communication who plays Faith in the show, said audience members can expect "to cry and learn something worth hearing."

"You might get angry or you might nod your head in agreement," Figg-Franzoi said. "But it will affect you in some way, and that is all we want."

Auguston explained that "Poor Tom" has been reworked and rewritten since its first performance in Ireland.

"We had more opportunities for this performance – from costumes and props, to a new set, to the script being rewritten – we've taken it and made it that much better," Auguston said. "And with a difference audience, it is a totally different kind of show."

Even with the new additions, the theme of "Poor Tom" remains constant.

"A big theme in the show is 'See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil,'" she said. "It comes up throughout the show."

Auguston stressed that while "Poor Tom" is not a commentary on modern day wars like Iraq, the message is universal.

"The play is set in 'Nowhereseville' and no place or time frame is given," she said. "Every person can relate it to their lives, on a big scale or on a small scale. When we performed in Ireland, the audience there said that they were affected by how much weight the story carries today."

Though it promises to be an intense experience, Auguston is optimistic about how "Poor Tom" will be welcomed on campus.

"I think it will be well received," Auguston said. "The play will still be important 50 years from now or 100 years from now, and it would have been relevant 100 years ago."

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