All schools in Upshur County will close at 1 p.m. today. All B-UHS sporting events today are canceled.

WVWC Arts! Alive Series, Department of Theatre & Dance to present The Rustic Mechanicals’ ‘Hamlet’ on Tuesday

BUCKHANNON – The West Virginia Wesleyan Arts Alive! Series and Department of Theater & Dance present The Rustic Mechanicals’ production of “Hamlet,” Tuesday, October 10 at 7:30 pm, with a casual pre-show “Mix and Mingle with Music” hosted by the company starting at 7 p.m. at the Virginia Thomas Law Center for the Performing Arts. The show features Wesleyan theater alumna and Buckhannon resident Sinead Pechon as Ophelia, and is free and open to the public. 

Prince Hamlet has the world at his feet. Young, wealthy and living a rather revelrous life studying abroad. Then word reaches him that his father is dead. Returning home he finds his world is utterly changed, his certainties smashed and his home a foreign land. Struggling to understand his place in a newly ordered world he faces a stark choice. Submit, or rage against the injustice of his new reality. Shakespeare’s searing tragedy is as relevant today as when it was written; “Hamlet” confronts each of us with the mirror of our own morality in an imperfect world.

Founded by Celi Oliveto in the summer of 2014 and based in Clarksburg, West Virginia, The Rustic Mechanicals is the only troupe of actors in West Virginia dedicated to touring the works of William Shakespeare and other classical playwrights.

Directed by Jim Warren alongside Intimacy Director Jessica Morgan, Fight Choreographer Millie Omps, and Voice & Text Coach Bridget Rue Esterhuizen, with Technical Direction by David Byard, Dramaturgy by John S. Shirley, Costume Design by Jason A Young, and Hair and Make-Up Design by Samantha Huffman, the Mechanicals featured in these productions include Samantha Huffman, Sinead Perchon, Seret Cole, Joshua Brooks, James Matthews, Calian Byard, Stephen Phillips, Jason A Young, Justin Grow, Niki DeWitt, and Sarah Young.

 The Mechanicals now tour five shows annually, including their summer West Virginia Shakespeare in the Park(s) outdoor tour and script-in-hand productions called, “a Play, a Pie, and a Pint,” focusing on making Shakespeare’s plays accessible to modern audiences by utilizing dynamic and extreme casting techniques paired with Shakespeare’s staging conditions.

“Hamlet” runs roughly 90 minutes with no intermission and contains images of simulated violence. Please contact Wesleyan Theatre & Dance Department Chair Thomas Schoffler at schoffler_t@wvwc.edu for more information.

Share this story:

Local Businesses

RECENT Stories

Upshur County Sports Calendar

Upshur County sports schedule runs Dec. 29–Jan. 4 with multiple Buckhannon-Upshur basketball games in winter classics and out-of-state tournaments, wrestling entries in Powerade and regional meets, and a Mohawk Invitational swim.

WVWC’s Witt named MEC Women’s Basketball Player of the Week

West Virginia Wesleyan senior Emma Witt and Concord’s Alexis Frazee were named co–MEC Women’s Basketball Players of the Week after Witt’s 30-point double-double and Frazee’s 20.5-point weekly average.

Driver cited after triggering three-vehicle crash on Main Street that damaged police car, hit Buckhannon bank

A Beverly woman allegedly ran a stop sign on Main Street in Buckhannon, causing a Dec. 27 crash that involved three vehicles and struck the First Community Bank building, according to the Upshur County Sheriff’s Department’s wreck report.

Woman extricated after Route 33 crash near Huddle House; truck driver cited

A Salem woman was trapped in her vehicle and had to be extricated after a two-vehicle crash on Route 33 north of the Huddle House. Police say a truck driver attempting to cross lanes to turn left was cited for failing to yield.

Bryan Lynn Fitzgerald

Bryan Lynn Fitzgerald, 68, of French Creek, WV, died December 24, 2025, in Morgantown and is survived by his family, with cremation and private services planned.

On the City of Buckhannon Calendar: Week of Dec. 29, 2025

No regularly scheduled meetings this week. City offices and waste collection closed January 1 for New Year’s Day.

Buckhannon man charged after allegedly breaking into trailer, fighting resident

A Buckhannon man was arrested after allegedly breaking into a home and fighting with one of the occupants. He faces charges including burglary, destruction of property, assault and battery.

Buckhannon woman charged with using elderly man’s bank card online

A Buckhannon woman was arrested after police say she used another person’s bank card information for multiple unauthorized transactions totaling about $1,201.29. She said the transactions were not intentional, and his card might have been saved to her online payments account.

St. Joseph’s Hospital Foundation funds advanced ophthalmology equipment through Lavera Clark Trust

The St. Joseph’s Hospital Foundation purchased new retinal imaging technology that enhances early detection and monitoring of conditions like diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma and macular degeneration.