The drama and comedy of tabloids will come to life on the stage of Penn State's No Refund Theatre (NRT) this weekend.

The play Betty's Summer Vacation pokes fun at social issues and is topped with enough explicit language and nudity to make anyone's mother blush.

Written by Christopher Durang and performed by NRT, the play is about Betty and five guests who arrive at a summer house on the same day.

Director Caitlin Cassidy (senior-theatre arts) said the play is written as a commentary on American culture.

She said the play poses questions about society and pokes fun at social issues.

Cassidy said she discovered Betty's Summer Vacation when she read the play for a class and found the material interesting.

"Expect to have your ideas questioned [and] have an open mind," Cassidy said.

Cassidy said NRT holds auditions twice a semester and includes members with majors ranging from theatre to English. The purpose of the club is to get anyone who wants to participate in theater involved, she said.

Chelsea Compton (senior-theatre and film and video) said she decided to join NRT at an involvement fair three years ago. She plays main character, Betty, this weekend.

Compton said her character doesn't buy into the crazy antics around her and is grounded in reality.

Betty is someone to whom the audience can relate, Compton said.

Compton said each of the play's characters comments on society in his or her own way.

"Everybody just brings a different element to the show," she said.

Compton said she wouldn't recommend the show for children.

It is a comedy, she said, but with dark humor. Students especially will find this type of show funny, she said.

"If you can find a way not to be offended by it, you will think the show's hilarious," Compton said.

Laura Davies (junior-film and video and English) plays Trudy, Betty's friend who was mistreated as a child.

Trudy blames a lot of her actions on her upbringing, but in reality, they are just ridiculous, Davies said.

Davies described the play as a wacky story of a group of strangers who come together, and hilarity ensues.

"There is a certain element of social critique, but it's hidden underneath layers of comedy," she said.

She said people can get more out of the show, but at
the very least, she said she thinks the audience will laugh.

"It's so obscure, everyone will find something hysterical," Davies said.

Penn State alumnus Matthew Brewster plays Voice No. 3. In the beginning of the show, the three voices start as a laugh track, similar to the laughing heard on a TV sitcom, he said.

Then, the voices start suggesting the characters do different things and, eventually, they take over.

The show is a good statement about how society reacts to celebrities and how people feel the constant need for real-life drama, he said.

"The most important thing is to not get caught up in the language," Brewster said. "[The show] is not just for shock value; it makes a definite statement."

He encourages people to see the performance, which is supposed to be a comedy.

"Come see the show without any explanation of what a play should be, and you'll really enjoy it," Brewster said.