The UC Davis theatre production Some Things Are Private, set to open May 5 and run through May 9, asks “What is art?” — drawing on the real story of photographer Sally Mann and the pictures she took of her young children in the nude and partially nude.

The intense controversy, including accusations of child pornography, forms the heart of the play, which premiered in 2008 at the Trinity Repertory Company in Providence, R.I. Trinity commissioned and produced the play, written by Deborah Salem Smith after she and Laura Kepley created the work.

Candice Andrews, a Master of Fine Arts candidate, is directing the UC Davis production, which is this year’s Director’s Showcase from the Department of Theatre and Dance. Andrews also gets credit for the work that led to UC Davis’ becoming the first university to secure the rights to produce the play.

Andrews takes full advantage of the opportunity, bringing together various segments of the academic community — photography, sociology and psychol-ogy — for post-performance talk-back sessions during which the audience can join in the discussion of such questions as, “How do we determine the boundaries between art and exploitation.”

Mann has photographs at some of the finest art museums in the country, but she is perhaps best known for the images of her three children in her collection Immediate Family (1992).

Some Things Are Private weaves Mann’s words with those of her critics and supporters, all drawn from interviews and letters in the public record. Still, the play is considered a docudrama, incorporating fact and fiction.

'Where do we draw the line?'

“Since arriving at UC Davis and observing art here,” Andrews said, “I myself have been grappling with the questions ‘What is art?’ and ‘Where do we draw the line?’ Nudity in art seems to be all around me, so I’ve begun looking within, at my emotional reaction before projecting onto others.

“The play posed intriguing questions that I couldn’t answer. For instance, how does that line change when a child is placed in front of the lens? Sally Mann responds to a similar question in the play with, ‘As if there’s a line we all agree on?’”

The play has similarly affected Della Z Duncan, fourth-year international relations and sociology double-major who portrays Mann.

“I now ask myself why I respond to art in the ways that I do. How much has to do with my biology, my experiences, my cultural upbringing and the context that I am in?

"The role has been challenging as there is no way to fully know how Sally Mann would react to the events and the dialogue. As a result, I’ve had to use a lot of my own interpretations and impulses to drive my process of character development.”

Actor and fellow M.F.A. candidate Barry Hubbard said Andrews’ direction has enlightened him about the many layers of artistic and aesthetic reasoning behind Mann’s photographs. “I’m learning that art has real danger in it — symbolic and literal,” Hubbard said.

The theme of “What is art?” resonates in every facet of the production. M.F.A. candidate Gian Scarabino, the play's scenic designer, said: “One of the biggest creative challenges for me is the act of defining art itself and continually rediscovering who creates that artificial boundary. More importantly than division, however, how do art and life come together to create a lasting image.”

Local art in the set design

Andrews gave Scarabino one very explicit direction: “Within the set it was important to me to display contemporary local art that included adult nudes, thus raising the issue of censorship from a different perspective. Who decides that?"

The local art comes from Jesse’s Vasquez, known for his unique energy, distinct aesthetic approach and endless inspiration.

Andrews met him in the art department while taking a while taking a black-and-white photography class; Vasquez works in the art department, and Andrews was exploring Mann’s darkroom techniques. "We are very excited to showcase Jesse Vasquez's black-and-white photographs as part of our set design.” Andrews said.

Stage manager Elisabeth Reeves, a forensic science graduate student, said Andrews works differently than any other director she has know, “She is very open with the cast about the artistic decisions being made and about how the show fits in with her own development as a director.”

The production team also is supported by M.F.A. candidate Jacob Nelson as lighting designer and undergraduate Michelle Lam as sound designer. Faculty member Maggie Morgan is the costume designer; she is an award-winning designer whose credits include such films as Apollo 13, Casino and Men in Black, as well as Broadway shows.

Undergraduates Shayna Carp, Ryan Geraghty, Rosamund Grimshaw and Brendan Ward round out the cast.

Reporting by Janice Bisgaard, publicity manager for the Department of Theatre and Dance.

AT A GLANCE

WHAT: Director’s Showcase

Some Things Are Private, directed by Candice Andrews, graduating Master of Fine Arts candidate

WHEN: 8 p.m. May 5-8 and 2 p.m. May 9

POST-PERFORMANCE TALK-BACKS: May 5 and 8

WHERE: Main Theatre, Wright Hall

TICKETS are available in advance through the Mondavi Center box office: (530) 754-2787 or (866) 754-2787, or mondaviarts.org. Tickets also sold at the door starting a half-hour before curtain time (pending availability).

ADVISORY: nude images, brief loud noises and minimal profanity

MORE INFORMATION: theatredance.ucdavic.edu