Senior-directed one-act plays, part of Concord High’s theatre program for a quite a while, continue this year with performances scheduled for Nov. 6, 7, 8 and 9.
Proceeds from $8 ticket sales will go to C.A.S.T., the drama club, to help cover costs of upcoming shows.
The popular one-act tradition provides C.A.S.T. seniors the opportunity to direct peer actors in a series of 20- to 40-minute plays.
Normally the event includes three or four shows, but this year’s performance will consist of seven different plays directed and co-directed by nine students.
Senior Griffin Stuart will direct “Midnight in Purgatory,” a show he penned himself.
“My play is about the three ghosts who meet with Scrooge and what happened in between visits with him,” Stuart explained.
Rowan Ferrier, director of “The Other Room,” chose that piece after experiencing it live at the NHETG State Drama Festival earlier this year.
The show is centered on an autistic boy’s brief encounter with a girl who “has never had really any experience with people with special needs before” and the connection they discover, Ferrier said.
Every director has a different method for conducting rehearsals.
Said Stuart: “My approach to directing is treat the cast as you would like to be treated.”
Ferrier places importance on the collaboration aspect of rehearsal. “Everybody is really experienced with theatre, so they all have good ideas to
go with,” he said.
The rewards of directing vary for everyone.
When asked what he found most rewarding about directing, Ferrier said, “…seeing when everything comes together and everyone kind of understands really what the message is of the show.”
But directing also can present difficulties.
Stuart is currently running into issues with the staging and blocking of his show, whereas Ferrier struggles with the possible interpretations of his characters.
Clint Klose, who as director of C.A.S.T. is overseeing the senior one-acts, said a good director is “someone who’s able to put the final vision that they have together. Someone who can delegate and someone who can inspire.”
For Klose, the connection with his students goes far back. “It’s a lot of fun because many of them I started with in elementary school so it’s nice to see them grow up as well as put forth a great product because they’ve all been part of great productions in the past. Now it’s something that they’re in charge of, so it’s fun to watch them achieve their goals.”
The five remaining shows are: “Booby Trap,” directed by Lexie Perlow and Hannah Matillano; “What Not To Do At Districts,” directed by Ryan Sweatt; “4 A.M.” directed by Jasmine Huffman and Peter Newland; “Chamber Music,” directed by Flynn Doncaster; and “Darwin’s Waiting Room” directed by Austin Maheu.
Ferrier hopes many will attend and appreciate this popular campus event. “This is an outlet where people can express themselves. If theatre is a way for people to do that then I think it’s important that people support it.”