Our very talented Underground Players once again put on a spectacular performance of two one-act plays, The Final Bell and The Last Snack, for its bi-annual Red Eye production taking place on January 10th. From curtain up to curtain down, these dedicated students incorporated both humor and drama to capture the audience’s attention. Each of the one-act plays not only showcased the strengths of the cast, but also demonstrated just how talented the stage crew is.
The term “Red Eye” refers to the production of a show that is written, rehearsed, and performed all in a single 24-hour period of time. Given the students could not stay at the school overnight, the Red Eye spanned two days, January 9th and 10th, creating a unique, one-of-a-kind performance. On January 9th, all twelve writers alongside the set, sound, and lighting crew, came up with an original script to then be presented to the directors and cast the next day. The writers were divided into two separate teams, each tasked with developing a different script. Before even writing a single word, the first step in the process was establishing an overarching theme and location to connect both of the plays. Once coming together as an entire group, it was mutually decided that the acts would take place in a daycare and be centered around familial and communal relationships. This setting was decided as a mechanism to elevate humor, because what isn’t funny about seeing a six-foot-three high schooler playing a four-year-old child?
The first of two plays was The Final Bell, which was captioned by Anja Montich and written by Simra Siddiqui, Carly Houseal, Nyah-Rose Riley, Julian Succart Lora, and Patricia Warrender. It tells the story of four students—Ashleigh, Bartholomew, Jerome, and Gertrude—following their journeys in daycare after the passing of their beloved teacher, Miss Honey, in a tragic accident. By showcasing the lives of the students alongside the depth of their relationship with Miss Honey, the audience is able to witness the personal growth of each character in real time. The team hoped to tackle the topics of grief and personal struggles whilst including dark humor and an underlying message of cherishing the past, given everything must come to an end.
The Last Snack, captioned by myself and written by Angela Domnich-Reynaud, AJ Boyle, Madelyn Trofa, Natalie Rosado, and Selena Brutus, features a student-led revolt against their substitute teacher, Mrs.Vanderbilt, after a food fight struck the room. The writers incorporated playful characters and silly jokes to end the night off on a lighter note. For example, the narrator was a hamster, the class hamster to be more specific, who often goes by the name Labubu. In addition to this, we made the names of the pre-schoolers, while seemingly normal, spelled extremely weird to contribute to the humor effect.
Once both scripts were finalized, they were sent out to the directors and published for the actors to read. The following day, January 10th, the Red Eye production continued. The stage crew alongside the special effects teams resumed their efforts, working diligently to craft a perfect environment for both plays. The front of house members were joined by the marketing crew in creating posters, bio-slides, and tickets for the play, bringing the play into the public eye.
Auditions were hosted by directors Addison Varga and Lia McLallen for casting in the production, with Maya D’Alleva taking charge behind the scenes with building the set. Addison Varga took to directing The Final Bell while Lia McLallen was in charge of directing The Last Snack. Once properly cast, all of the actors were presented with scripts and were off to their table reads to learn their lines and understand stage directions.
While the writers weren’t allowed to attend the rehearsal on Saturday, I got the opportunity to take photographs of the behind-the-scenes. That said, to be able to witness the process of developing these plays was truly rewarding. The cast and crew brought forth immense effort into perfecting the script and to think I was a part of this extraordinary ensemble was truly one of the most memorable moments of my senior year experience. The crew members worked efficiently while the actors took unique approaches to their characters–both of which brought the script to life in the most creative way.
Throughout the day, everyone worked tirelessly, running lines, drilling in stage directions, and perfecting the set. Between pizza breaks and short rounds of Imposter, our time was winding down, and it was almost show time. At 5 o’clock, actors were set to be mic’d and sound check had begun. During this part of the production, there were tons of errors and obstacles, but everyone remained focused and determined, dedicated to finalizing the details.
And finally, the doors were ready to be opened.
The Final Bell was a complete success with audiences bursting in laughter while feeling all the emotions. The roles of the preschoolers, played by Micah Depakakibo, Bella McPherson, Finn Pryor, and DJ Meyer, and Miss Honey, played by Caliyn Oguntayo, were all simply marvelous. These characters represented a light, humorous side, seeing as they are children, and served as the humor powerhouse of the play. And after the passing of Miss Honey, the same preschoolers, now grown up, were played by Natalie Ford, Weston Potten, Maia Isajiw, and DJ Meyer. These characters brought depth and emotion to the play, depicting people that pertain to adulthood and deal with struggles of marriage, college, death and other lifestyle obstacles.
Following The Final Bell and Intermission, the curtains reopened, revealing Peanut the class hamster, played by Lucas Albini. Peanut introduced a group of unruly children played by Hudson Etezady, Sofia Szymanska, Riley Burris, Grace Dean, Bailey Cherry, and Samantha Tracy. When their substitute teacher arrives, played by Ann Picariello, she is met with many unexpected challenges–starting with the oddly-spelled names of the students. The situation becomes more dire as the new kid Charlie, played by John Nyguen, caused a food fight, leaving Mrs.Vanderbilt sick of all the trouble that has been made by these children. As a result, she bans snacktime–an act of frustration met with aggression and revolt as the class decides they will come together to reinstate snack time. This play reveals great teamwork on behalf of the crew, but also focuses on themes surrounding courage, teamwork, and community.
With that, the “Red Eye” was completed. And seeing the success it has received this year, I’m sure it can reach even new heights next year.
