Help Maddie Rainer produce her Senior Show!

Hello! I’m Maddie Rainer and I am a current senior at FSU in the BA Theater Program. Throughout my time here, I’ve had the privilege to be a part of a multitude of productions in many different artistic, as well as performance, roles. I started my theater journey 12 years ago as a performer, but over the past year I’ve found a new love in directing. It invigorates and inspires me in a new and challenging way, and I plan to go to further my education by going to grad school for directing in the next five years. This fall, I had the privilege of direct Five Seconds Flat, a Lizzy McAlpine jukebox musical, that I wrote and directed with Ava Podewitz, that raised over $500 for Side B Society, the student organization that produced the project. Now as I approach my senior year, I am looking to produce a solo project, and with a story that is very close to my heart.

I went to a small all-girls Catholic High School for all four years of my high school experience. It was such a very specific experience that is hard to put into words, and even though I hated it while I was there, I now realize just how much it formed me in adulthood. In my opinion, it highlighted both the best, and worst parts of girlhood. The gossip was horrific, and the academic competition was intense. Our schools annual “Sports Night”, where our school teams competed, was the fiercest and most emboldened I have ever seen a group of teenagers. However when life happened, as it so often did, we stuck together. We staged walkouts against school shootings, we wrote to our principal when we believed we weren’t being treated fairly, marginalized students stood up when they were being discriminated against, and we all stood behind each other. We didn’t have football games, we didn’t have a classic prom, we just had each other. Other schools in the area called our school “a cult”. And honestly…they were right! Teenage girls are terrifying!

About a year and a half ago, I had jokingly talked to a friend about how strong my intuition was. I would talk about people and then they would suddenly appear, or my gut feelings would turn out to be facts. After I joked about being prophetic, she jokingly said “Maybe!”, and that’s where this idea began. I had always been a horror fan, and I decided to use the moniker of “cult” that the other schools had given my alma matter, plus my own experiences with religion to help curate the rest of my idea. Thus, Stigmata was born.

Stigmata tells the story of a dreary, competitive all girls catholic boarding school, and how everything changes when a student, Johanna, at the school that suddenly begins performing miracles. The girls begin to form their separate factions, those who support Johanna, and those who don’t. As the girls struggle to be themselves, it becomes easier to follow Johanna rather than face their own truths. As word begins to spread outside of the school, Johanna’s following grows bigger and bigger, and it soon becomes dangerous for those who oppose her to speak out.

In a time where radical beliefs are becoming more common in day-to-day life, I find it increasingly important to produce this play now. It’s really a scary time to be a woman, as so much of our futures is unsure. The world feels like it’s crumbling around us, and desperation causes people to turn to some scary things. I think this play will resonate, certainly if produced now.

However, putting on a show is expensive! Because it is set in a catholic school, I will need to get some really specific costuming and props. And because it is an ensemble piece (featuring 8 women and one male!), there will be a lot of costuming needed. I will alsoneed some SFX makeup which is NOT cheap, because of this plays’ horror nature! Anything you can give means the world, and will help me tremendously in putting on my senior show!

This story means so much to me, and I really, really want to share it with the FSU community during my last semester here. Anything helps, and I can’t put into words how thankful I am for anything you can give. Any excess funding will go towards a charity, or a student organization if it is produced through one!

I hope to produce the show in Mid February, I hope to see you there!