I can’t escape it. It’s coming. As I flip the calendar page to August, I realize its inevitability. Summer is winding down, and that generally means one thing: a new school year is about to begin. For me, this means I’m making preparations as the Drama Club Sponsor at SHS. This will be the fifth year in a row in which I have directed the fall play at the high school. One of my goals with play selection is to alternate humorous and serious works from year to year.
This year, it was time for a comedy, and in my opinion, it’s a great one. This year, the Drama Club will produce Neil Simon’s classic comedy, The Odd Couple, both the male and female versions, which grants me the ambiguously exciting task of directing two full-length plays … at the same time.
Generally, at this time in the year, a peculiar feeling comes over me. It reminds me of the sensation of the moment before stepping onstage. As a young theatre student (and many times thereafter), my heart would beat faster, my fingers and toes would grow cold and tingly, and that persistent little demon named doubt would drop my stomach through the soles of my feet. In that moment, I would think, “What if this doesn’t work? Guess we’ll find out.”
This year, I’ve chosen Simon’s plays for a myriad of reasons. First of all, this allows the students the unique opportunity to work something like a repertory company: a company that produces several plays at the same time, with a different show on the stage every night. Once a performance is done, a repertory company will tear down that set for the night, and put up the next day’s set. For our production, the work won’t be as intense; the play will have the same set, but the performances for each version will be presented on alternating nights. Thus, the students get a feel for repertory work, where a lot of theatrical professionals find jobs. Secondly, the plays are set in two very different time periods, which gives student performers and designers the chance to compare and contrast how the same subject matter is addressed in two different sociocultural backdrops. Finally, a criticism of myself: I have been getting somewhat pedantic in my directing. For those of you that saw our production of Romeo & Juliet last year, I hope you took note of how we altered the play from traditional period style, but it was all meant to portray a message. While I still feel that the theatre is a catalyst for personal reflection, I also see us in a year of political choices; one in which virtually every media outlet is strongly suggesting away for us to “think.” I didn’t want to be another cog in that machine. This year, I guess I just want to make you laugh a little … most likely a lot. It is Neil Simon, after all.
So, please – mark your calendars for an auspicious theatrical experiment this fall. We’ll be presenting The Odd Couple during the first two weekends in November at SHS. I will keep you posted with more details in upcoming columns. If you can’t wait until then, please check out our new website: https://sites.google.com/site/sheridanhighschooldramaclub/. We’ve got a lot going on.
As I read over my words again, that aforementioned new feeling is walking up my spine again. I am still thinking to myself, “What if this doesn’t work? Guess we’ll find out.” But, instead of all the jitters, a sly smile is on my face. I think instead of doubt, I’m feeling wide-eyed wonder.
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