Collaboration must be in the air in Meadows because everyone seems to be catching onto the idea that two skills are better than one.

Theater student Ezra Bookman caught the bug to collaborate with MFA visual art student Bernie Diaz for his undertaking of “Grenadine” by Neil Wechsler.

“There’s a lot of potential for collaboration in Meadows,” Bookman said. ” There’s a power in combining art forms; it’s a challenge for the creators that hopefully translates to an interesting show.”

Bookman found “Grenadine” when perusing bookstores in New York City.

Although relatively new, Wechsler’s play was awarded the 2008 Yale Drama Series Award by Pulitzer Prize winning playwright Edward Albee.

The play is a story of friendship, love and a journey.

Similar in plot to “Oh Brother Where art Thou?” the play is about four friends on a journey from prison to reunite with the lives they once led.

The four friends are played by Dylan Stewart, Micah Figueroa, Tyler Crim and Piper Werle.

The other four theater students in the show play a total of 24 characters whom the friends encounter on this journey.

These parts are performed by Alia Tavakouan, Isaac McGinley, Aneesha Kudtarkar and Nick Cains.

“Grenadine captures the change that people undergo when they are faced with problems that they need to conquer,” Bookman said.

Bookman has pulled together a show that promises to be both challenging and aesthetically pleasing, thanks to Diaz’ hand drawn designs for the projected backdrops.

Bookman has crafted the play into something all his own, from the white backdrop for Diaz’s backgrounds to the mixture of puppetry, shadow puppetry, physical presence and shadows.

The play’s surrealism fits well into the setting that Bookman has envisioned, and the only way to fully visualize it is to come see it.

“I hope the show challenges people’s preconceived notions of what theater is and should be,” Bookman said.

Grenadine will be produced in Meadows B150, Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., and Sunday at 2 and 8 p.m.