Actress Sue Ott Rowlands has performed the traveling show "Homebody" in Saudi Arabia, Hungary, Romania and Wales and this week will take the stage in Squires Studio Theatre.
While Blacksburg is vastly different from the overseas locations, dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences Ott Rowlands said the play has themes that reach across cultures.
"The themes are really quite universal," she said.
The play deals with the issue of identity, trying to find a place in the world where the life you live can matter, self validation and contribution, Ott Rowlands said.
"Homebody" is the first act of "Homebody/Kabul" and is about a British woman who is debating whether to leave her London home for Afghanistan.
Ott Rowland will deliver this one-hour long show and will be the only actor on stage throughout the performance. She first embodied the character, who is referred to as Homebody, in 2005 at the University of Toledo and has been acting as her ever since, but said the role hasn't become stale.
"No performance is ever the same. It's a constant discovery," Ott Rowlands said. "Whenever you share an idea with someone, it's about how the idea hits them and it informs you. It's that give and take."
Ott Rowlands doesn't have to concentrate on keeping the role fresh as each performance is a different experience. She learns something new from her audience's reaction.
Ott Rowlands said she likes Homebody and learns something new about the character every time she reprises the role.
"She's so smart and complicated, and needy. I think she's very witty and somebody I'd like to spend time with," Ott Rowlands said.
Homebody carries the first act by herself and because of this, "there's quite a lot left to the actor," she said.
Freelance director Elysa Marden said Ott Rowlands is a master of the complex language of "Homebody."
"It's an actor's tour de force," Marden said. "It's a wonderful challenge for a woman in contemporary theater."
Marden said she doesn't fear that the imprint she left on the play when she directed it is gone.
"I love that the work lives on," Marden said. "I fully expect that the spine of the choices are still there."
Holly Monsos, the designer and producer who handled lighting and costumes, said she trusts artistic decisions the crew makes after she has laid the groundwork for them.
"You just turn it into the back of the wardrobe and say 'go,'" she said. "They're going to do what they're going to do."
Monsos said that while lighting can add to the mood, the show is very portable and will work with whatever technology is available.
"The piece itself is such a strong piece that it can be done without any lighting support," Monsos said.
Monsos said Homebody is an overlooked but deep character, which she had to reflect in her costume choices.
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