Crafton Hills College’s HAM brings thrills, drama to Finkelstein Performing Arts Center
Publish Date: Feb. 28, 2024
On Father’s Day 1932, Sam’s life was turned upside down when his only form of communication, a HAM radio, would be taken over by a demonic spirit longing for chaos.
That was the premise of an all-new production from playwright Chris Coon – aptly titled HAM – staged by the Crafton Hills College Theater Department on Feb. 23, 24 and 25. Twenty-six-year-old Tristan Clift, who played the lead role of Sam, auditioned for the play based solely on his fascination with the idea of a “possessed HAM radio,” he shared.
“Sam lost his wife a few years ago and his day-to-day [routine] is always the same, but this is the first time, the first day something happened to him out of the ‘norm,’” said Clift, a first-year Crafton theater major.
Set in a remote Alaskan cabin, Sam has to work through his emotions as the demon in question – aka Bud – takes to the airwaves as Sam’s “son” and his wife, Ruth, returns from the dead. Soon, a minister, played by Roe McCarty, enters the cabin and tries to sway Sam away from the demon’s hold, but Sam ignores his pleas.
“Sam doesn’t believe any of this is true in his brain, but his heart wants to believe it’s all real,” Clift said. “I think even if Sam knew he was [Bud’s] puppet, getting to feel like he had a family again for a period of time, whether short or not, then he would say, ‘Let’s just go with it.’”
Director Paul Jacques touted the production as “A Twilight Zone episode on stage,” and it’s no surprise when talking to Coon that Jacques was right. “Every Twilight Zone episode that would be on when I was a kid had me glued to the screen. I couldn’t help but be influenced by it,” Coon shared, when interviewed after the performance.
Being trapped in an unfamiliar place while experiencing a rollercoaster of emotions is often the motif of vintage Zone episodes. Sam, who had just returned from a day out in the field, is like the everyday man trying to keep his career afloat while navigating the 12 Stages of Grief. “The moment Sam started interacting with the demonic voice was the moment he sold his soul to Bud,” Coon explains. “Here we thought we were going to experience a heartfelt story of grief and a father’s loss and what he’s willing to do to get them back, and in comes a Howard Stern-like, shock jock-like character coming back and messing with him through his radio.”
For the final show of the production, audiences were captivated from the moment the lights dimmed and Clift entered through those cabin doors. Rounding out the cast of HAM were Aaron Lonnstrom as Young Ham; Andromeda Dunlop as Adult Ham; Jonathan Black as Old Ham; Naomi Gonzales as Ruth; Derek Verasteugi as Russ; and Debra Brighton as Bud.
While Coon wasn’t able to witness the final curtain call, he said he was highly impressed with everyone involved in the production, from the entire cast to Olivia Jacques’ set design. “They brought it all to life in a crazy way,” Coon said. “My mind on stage was fully realized with people giving the most they could and nailing it. I thank them from the top of my vibrations to the bottom of my frequencies.”
