They found lava in a hopeless place . . .
Submitted
When one hears the name Mellencamp, most think of John. But there’s another creative Mellencamp in Indiana – Blake. His first staged play Pompeii & Circumstance will be produced by Clerical Error Productions, Inc. as part of the Indy Fringe Festival, Aug. 17 to Sept. 3.
The Playwright Blake Mellencamp
Mellencamp is in his eighth year of teaching language arts at Zionsville Middle School. He has distinguished himself both in and outside the classroom. He has helped many Indiana teachers through his service on The Indiana Writing Project and as middle school chair of the Indiana Council for Teachers of English. The Indiana State Teachers Association honored him with an appointment to its Emerging Leaders Cohort. On the international level, he has served on the Transatlantic Educators’ Dialogue.
Most of Mellencamp’s recent writing has been on YouTube with an educational channel called Oh the Humanities. He also does freelance writing for an anime YouTuber called Ohara.
Mellencamp is a musician and actor. He plays the emperor in Pompeii & Circumstance.
Pompeii & Circumstance
Travel back to ancient Rome as Publius and Servius, two of Pompeii’s least capable servants, are tasked with preparing for the Roman Emperor’s upcoming visit. This satiric look at day-to-day life in Pompeii is sure to shock with its explosive ending.
Mellencamp, a member of the Clerical Error repertory group since its inception in 2018, describes the play as “farcical, satirical, and joke-dense. However, at the same time it’s thought-provoking. And it’s just a little bit spicy, too. While the play’s main aim is to make people laugh, I do hope that Pompeii & Circumstance gets people thinking, too.”
Mellencamp goes on to say, “I do try to include some social commentary and messages that I’m trying to communicate. I think comedy, and satire in particular are a great vehicle for that. If someone just gets on their soapbox and gives a speech or writes an essay about a topic, the audience’s guard is going to be up – you’ll be more resistant toward taking in new ideas.
“Comedy, though, gets people laughing. It allows viewers to lower their defenses a bit, and lets you communicate some deeper ideas without people feeling like they’re being preached at. Of course, if they’re able to just have a good laugh for an hour, that’s fine, too. People need to laugh.”
Performances
Pompeii & Circumstance will run for six shows as part of the Indy Fringe Festival at The District Theatre’s main stage in downtown Indianapolis.
- Saturday, Aug. 19, noon to 1 p.m.
- Sunday, Aug. 20, 7 to 8 p.m.
- Aug. 24, 7:15 to 8:15 p.m.
- Saturday, Aug. 26, 8:45-9:45 pm
- Friday, Sept. 1, 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.
- Saturday, Sept. 2, 1:45 to 2:45 p.m.
Tickets are available at indyfringe.org/festival.
For more information on Clerical Error Productions, Inc. please visit ClericalErrorProductions.com. Clerical Error Productions, Inc. is an Indiana Nonprofit Corporation and a 501(c)(3) organization.