To Stand In The Water by Alice Wilkinson

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Director: Alice Wilkinson 

Assistant Director: Makaylee Secrest 

Stage Manager: Caitlyn Gilliam

Lighting Designer: Gabrielle Montagnino 

Costume Designer: Bethany Sassen 

Sound Designer: Aicheng Yao, Haley Hughes 

Set Designer: Cole Clark  

Prop Designer: Elizabeth Le Blanc

Photographer: Taylor Crochet

              To Stand in the Water is a new play written and directed by Alice Wilkinson. The story centers around Hugh, a flyfisherman, who is trying to maintain access to his favorite fishing spot along the Arkansas River, in Colorado. Tom, a private landowner, recently purchased this prized stretch of the river and is trying to push Hugh and other locals out. What ensues is a debate between locals and landowners as to who has access to waterways in the American West.    

         This immersive production is based on the current Hill vs. Warsewa court case, which has in recent weeks risen to the Supreme Court level. To Stand in the Water digs into the personal and political implications of privatizing waterways. According to the show’s writer and director, Alice Wilkinson, “Water dictates life out West. It’s our most precious resource and yet it’s being grossly mismanaged. I wanted to dive into the ambiguity of Colorado’s water laws and who suffers as a result. How can we unpack and address these antiquated ideas surrounding ownership when a fisherman, birder, painter, and rancher confront a new property owner?”