Theater Changes Its Annual Show Schedule
Three shows will be produced by the drama program this year
Ms. Gehrke and members of the one act “Anne-Arky” rehearse their lines at a recent practice.
October 7, 2020
Whether you watch them at home from a screen or socially distanced in the auditorium, you can bet that the show must still go on with the LHS drama program. COVID-19 isn’t going to stop them.
“No matter what, we’re still going to somehow create [the show],” theatre sponsor Mrs. Gehrke said.
This year “Anne-arky”, “The Crucible” and “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee”will be playing in the Liberty theater.
Getting ready for the shows will be completely different this year.
“Starting out, we are trying to not have large groups of students together,” Gehrke said.
Usually when anyone applied for crew she would gladly give everyone a spot. But she is limiting the number of people allowed at school to be safe.
It’s incredibly dramatic, probably the most dramatic show that we will ever attempt to do up to this date. — Mrs. Gehrke, about play The Crucible
“I am just so looking forward to getting people back on stage and back creating,” Gehrke said.
While a normal play would take anywhere from two to three months, this year she is starting with the one act play “Anne-Arky” to test the waters, set to debut Oct. 22 and 23.
For safety reasons, both mainstage shows will be produced during second semester. Not only in that time will they be working on the play, but also the musical which will be playing in late April.
Even under these circumstances, drama club members are glad to start making theatre again.
“We’re all really excited here here in the theater department,” sophomore Elaine Thiyman said.
“Anne-arky” is a one-act play about a drama club preparing for opening night. But, when word starts to get out that an agent is in the audience, things backstage don’t go according to plan. “Anne-arky” will be playing on Oct. 22-23. Tryouts just finished and the crew is already starting to get ready for the show.
While actually running the show, Gehrke will have around 8-10 crew members on the night of the show running backstage, along with 10 cast members. While she knows the number of people who are putting the show together will be high, she’s also well aware that the audience will be small and the actual contact rate will be low.
The second show playing is the classic “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller. This show will take you back to the 1600’s during the Salem Witch trials.
“It’s incredibly dramatic, probably the most dramatic show that we will ever attempt to do up to this date,” Gehrke said.
Lastly, “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” will be playing this year in the spring. This musical tells the story of teengers who are trying to win the contest and are facing their own crazy struggles.
“It is one of the funniest musicals you’ll ever see” Gehrke said.
There has been a lot of time and planning going into these shows- even during the pandemic, you can still see all the hard work pay off.
