UMD Theatre: Everybody

University of Minnesota Duluth’s College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences and Department of Theatre are thrilled to present Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’s Everybody — the Pulitzer-nominated play about life’s uncertainties (and the certainty of death). Performances run November 6-14.

Directed by guest artist Julie Ahasay, this inventive adaptation of the 15th-century morality play Everyman follows the allegorical character “Everybody” on a journey to face Death, a quest that is by turns irreverent and profound. Embodying life’s unpredictability, certain roles at each performance will be assigned by lottery.

The live lottery is central to the play’s meta-theatrical high-wire act. An usher, played by an actor, opens each performance by explaining the premise before five cast members learn which roles they will perform that very night by the spin of a Bingo wheel. Supported by four actors portraying fixed roles — including archetypes like “Love,” the unpredictable casting reinforces the show’s theme that chance and fate wait for no one.

Staged as an immersive and environmental experience, the action happens all around the audience. The visual world of the play echoes the journey, starting in rich, vibrant color before elements are gradually stripped away. Much like in Medieval times, when playwrights sneaked irreverent and naughty humor into stories, this production is bold, saucy, and funny in places audiences least expect.

The production showcases an ensemble of student performers, including first-year actors taking on complex roles.

UMD students are eligible for free rush tickets 30 minutes prior to a performance with a valid UMD student ID; subject to availability.