Discrimination and homophobia have been problems in American society for centuries as people have struggled to find individual niches within the historically conservative fabric of America.

No Refund Theater (NRT) will speak to these issues this week when it presents Lillian Hellman's The Children's Hour at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday in 111 Forum.

Hellman originally penned the play as a version of actual events that took place in the 1860s in an all-girl school.

In the play, a young student spreads rumors about her teachers -- the school's founders -- convincing the student body and parents alike that the two are lesbians.

"Lillian Hellman wrote the play based on an event that happened in the 1860s," director Amy Denholtz (senior-public relations and women's studies) said. "It really speaks a lot to the fear and homophobia that we have in our society," she said. "This play deals with how easy it is to judge and criticize people who are different. I really think Lillian Hellman was a very liberal thinker for her time."

Megan McCloskey (senior-thermonuclear engineering), who plays Karen Wright, one of the accused teachers, said the play is as pertinent today as it was when it was written. Unjust rumors and judgments truly are significant in the lives of those involved, she added.

"[Karen Wright] is a very kind woman, she has things in her life very organized," she said. "She gets the school up and running and is engaged to be married. The rumors really have an impact on her life and throw into disarray everything she's worked for."

McCloskey agreed that rumors and judgments can seriously affect a person's life.

"The story is a great example of what discrimination can do and the negative consequences it can have if it's unchecked," she added.

Neaka Balloge (freshman-psychology) plays Mary Tilford, the young student who spreads the rumors, and said she feels the nature of her character not only makes the play fun to act in, but adds to the importance of the conflicts that drive the plot.

"She's a youngster who kind of starts the horror," Balloge said. "She is a jealous, bitter girl who wants attention any way she can get it so she hatches a plot to frame her teachers as lesbian lovers."

Due to the nature of the show and the issues it raises, Denholtz said members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community and its allies will be at both shows to hand out information and answer questions about sexual orientation for anyone interested.

"I wanted to include some activism with the show," Denholtz said. "If anyone attending the play is dealing with their own issues we wanted to make some resources available for them."