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No Easy Decisions In 'Twelve Angry Men'

Reginald Rose's Twelve Angry Men is a taut courtroom drama, but following the charge from the judge, all the action takes place in the jury room.

Twelve Angry Men began as a teleplay in 1954. It was then expanded into a successful Broadway play, and, in 1957, into an award winning movie.

A more recent filming of the play, in 1997, updated the casting a bit. African-American characters appeared in the jury pool, and a woman actor played the judge. The film's producer and director did consider having a mix of women in the jury, but vetoed the idea in keeping with the piece's title.

Twelve Angry People

Elisabeth Addleman, the director for the Edgewood High School's Masqued Crafters' production, has no such scruples. Although all the actors wear jackets and ties, there's a mix of males and females.

Mikaela Bialy is in her second season with the group. She describes her juror as a bit of a wimp."He seems to be easily swayed. He changes his mind quite a bit. Actually, he pretty much agrees with whoever just spoke."

Kelly Hudson is new to the Masqued Crafters, and in fact, to the whole lower forty-eight states. She comes to Ellettsville from a town outside Toronto, Canada. Her juror surprises her a bit. "He's a businessman, and a wealthy one at that. He seems to be pretty sympathetic, though; I thought that being wealthy he might not have much care for others."

Binding The Ties

Neither Bialy nor Hudson is fazed by having to dress up in male attire. For Bialy, it's no problem. For Hudson, the main challenge seems to be tying a necktie. "My mother and father are pretty good at it, but it seems to have skipped a generation," she says.

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