On Oct. 23 at 7:30 p.m., the UNI Student Theatre Association is hosting their “UNISTA Under the Stars” event where students get to participate in theatre in a fun and socially distanced way. Originally set to take place at the Arts Triangle Courtyard, the event will now be held at the Strayer-Wood Theatre due to unexpected cold temperatures.

The first UNISTA Under the Stars event took place on Oct. 9 when Lindy Rublaitus, a Communications and Theater Arts student, directed a play called “10 out of 12,” that she had originally sent in to be considered for the 2020-2021 season before the COVID-19 pandemic. Rublaitus had the opportunity to precast Herschel and hold a few Zoom rehearsals prior to show night.

The upcoming UNISTA Under the Stars event will showcase a reading from the Halloween favorite “Hocus Pocus. Students will have the option to participate in the event.

“We have created an internet for more students to tell us what roles they would be interested in reading and we will draw names from a hat that night” said Maycie Stanbro, Artistic Director of UNISTA.

Stanbro further stated that if a student wants to read but did not fill out the form, they are still welcome to add their name to the drawing when they arrive.

There will also be some UNI Theatre Alumni participating in the event. These students will be filling in the roles of the Sanderson Sisters.

“We are hopeful that this will help first year and transfer students make connections to the theatre world outside of the UNI Theatre Department,” says Stanbro.

The event will also have a ton of Halloween-themed decorations to celebrate the upcoming holiday and get everyone in the mood for the celebration.

“We are so excited to be putting on ‘Hocus Pocus,’ said Stanboro. “We are encouraging students to wear costumes inspired by the movie as well! Students who come in costume will be allowed to enter their name twice for any characters they would like to read for before the show.”

To comply with COVID-19 guidelines, according to Stanbro, the event will require students attending to wear masks, in addition to a grid of 6×6 boxes with every other box marked off to ensure that everyone is at a safe distance.