Pain of disorder felt in drama

Numbers, numbers, numbers. The statistics about eating disorders reveal only part of a problem which runs much deeper in the minds of its victims.

"It's not about the science behind the disease. It's not preaching. It deals with the emotions and feelings," said Kimberly Colflesh, a performer in the ensemble.

The skit, the one most often requested of the troupe, was originally conceived by Jessica Weiner, a University graduate and founding ensemble member. Weiner, who had faced an eating disorder, wrote the skit to help others face the problems she went through.

"(Weiner) wanted people to understand. You'll leave the show knowing that it is an important problem," Colflesh said.

The show continues to develop with the addition of original work and excerpts of established writers.

One excerpt comes from Joyce Carol Oates' I Stand Before You Naked.

". . . The therapist -- that woman Ph.D. who came to talk to us at assembly -- saying it's a medical problem an illness trying to scare us (with) 'irreversible liver damage' but it isn't. It isn't physical at all. It's here. It's God inside me. It's mine," she says.

The ensemble performs various shows dealing with different issues throughout campus in classrooms, auditoriums and dorm lounges.

The group usually performs before a small audience, said Barry Kur, director of the ensemble. Discussion and interaction is encouraged after the show.

"Our major focus is to get people to talk about it," Kur said.

Body Loathing/Body Love inspires some of the best emotional responses, Kur said.

Audience response is exactly what the group wants to hear, Kur said.

"It validates us when we hear people have experienced what we're doing," he said.

Colflesh said she acknowledges the shows effect on an audience as well as on herself.

"I think it's a tough show to get through for the actors and the audience. It's very hard to give myself over to the role," Colflesh said. "But I think it is the most important show we do."