This past Sunday, a surprising amount of theater fans came out of their warm abodes and into the unkind deep freeze to see “Pentecost.”

“Pentecost” is the newest production by NIU’s theater department. The show deals with themes of freedom and discovery.

-Perhaps the finest aspect of “Pentecost” is the use of different languages, a big step for a play with a core audience of college students who would most likely rather see the latest Ben Stiller film than try to comprehend a foreign tongue.

They overcome the language barrier by using exaggerated pantomimes and flamboyant body movements.

It was reminiscent of the scene in “Return of the Jedi” where C3PO is telling the Ewoks the story of Luke Skywalker.

“The different languages made it interesting,” freshman meteorology major Brittney Misialek said.

“The different languages [dragged] it out a bit,” freshman pre-communication major Trevor Kershaw said in opposition.

“Pentecost” is about two art enthusiasts who stumble upon an old painting in an abandoned church. The first act involves the two enthusiasts and Leo Katz, a reporter from New York who came to prove the painting was a fake. The second act finds the lead characters taken captive by renegade, asylum-seeking terrorists. The terrorists become the play’s main interest, resulting in an action-packed ending that took everyone by surprise.

The length of the play, which totaled 3.5 hours, caught some off guard.

Theater major Scott McCulloch’s performance as Grigori shined once again. Avid theater patrons may remember his fantastic job in “The Scarlet Letter.”

Junior theater major David Bettino plays Leo Katz.

“When I started in theater, I was very concerned with the external manifestations of the character,” Bettino said. “If it’s not real for me, [then] that’s what I’m primarily concerned with.”

“Pentecost” is playing at 7:30 p.m. today through Saturday, and at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Stevens Building’s O’Connell Theatre. Tickets cost $7 for students, $8 for senior citizens and $14 for the general public.