As the school year winds down and finals arrive, all eyes point to next year and the Jesuit Theater program is looking good. In a year filled with many One Acts and productions, the theater program is booming now more than ever with a record number of auditions. Next year is shaping up to be one of the best in years for the program with a much larger, more diverse team of faculty directors in the program.
For the fall drama, Mr. David Myers, the director of the program, will be teaming up with the sophomore English teachers to present Arthur Miller’s classic play, “The Crucible.” The Crucible is a dramatization of the Salem witch trials that took place in the Province of Massachusetts Bay during 1692 and 1693, and many students are looking forward to performing this one.
Denis Alexander ’14 has very high expectations for The Crucible and is confident it will be the best play of the year. Alexander went on to say that “I really feel like [Jesuit Theater] can bring a lot of uniqueness to [‘The Crucible’] like we did with the ‘Odyssey’ my freshman year.”
Garret Alldredge ’16, a rising sophomore, also appears optimistic for The Crucible, saying that “[he] look[s] forward to it the most because [he] like[s] the back story to it and think[s] that it will be fun to have more experience with shows like it.”
For the first time Jesuit Theater is doing a summer program which will improve the acting for the returning students, incoming freshmen, and younger students from other schools as well. Mr. Myers is confident that there will be improvement for next year because of the program.
With a high amount of potential among incoming freshmen, Myers added that “the incoming frosh will be trained all ready and [our] core actors on campus should be better trained.” Myers concluded with, “[we] should be able to draw in a broader middle school audience, because we’ll have better relationships with their programs and students.
In the spring, Mr. Joe Howard ’04 and Mr. Chris Patterson ’08 will be joining Mr. Myers to direct Mark Twain’s lone comedic play “Is He Dead?” “Is He Dead?” is a fictional version of a great French painter as an impoverished artist in Barbizon, France who stages his death in order to increase the value of his paintings, and afterwards dresses as a woman to keep his secret safe.
Editor-in-Chief, as well as actor, Aaron Stonecipher ’14 believes that this play will be excellent and will draw in a big crowd. Stonecipher commented that [“Is He Dead?”] is supposed to be the funniest [play performed] yet.”
A full group of One Acts will be performed and directed by students in the winter and spring. John Jackson ’14 is looking forward to the main stage shows but is most excited for the One Acts. Jackson went on to say, “What I’m really exited for is directing my own One Act.” Jackson also mentioned that he is exited to pick out a cast and really dig into the script with them.
Mr. Myers, as well as the rest of the staff are looking forward to next year’s productions and the improvements that will be made. When asked about expectations for next year Mr. Myers said that “[I’m] expecting more polished One Acts, broader participation from students from Booker T. Washington and even better productions.” Myers is also optimistic about the momentum that is going right now and the many talented underclassmen entering the program.
It is a bright future for the Jesuit theater program. Make sure to come out and support.
