One-Act Play

By Mollie Rew

The students at Yutan High School will soon seek revenge as they experience a series of murders.  But only on stage.

This year’s one-act play is “Sweeny Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.” It was written by C.G. Bond in 1974. Sweeny Todd features a barber who was wrongfully accused of a crime. The barber seeks revenge when he finds that the judge in charge of the case wants to seduce his wife.

The cast will be performing the play five times throughout November and December. Its first show will be held on Nov. 5 at Yutan High School at 7 p.m.

“I knew this play would interest the students,” said Jon Gathje, the director of the one-act play. “Sweeny Todd involves a lot of action and drama. It’s a big step up from the traditional plays.”

Auditions for the play were held on Sept 17. The number of students to audition decreased from last year.

“The senior class had many students involved in the school plays,” Gathje said. “We lost a lot of good folks from last year, but we still have some.”
Becoming part of the one-act play can be difficult. Gathje bases his decision of who will play what part by using three main characteristics. He said the actors must have a loud voice, be able to look their part and have the ability to fill the character.
Sophomore Jordan Zauha is one of the students involved in the one-act.
“The play is my favorite activity,” Zauha said. “I was part of it last year and liked it a lot. There are a lot of great people involved and it’s really fun.”
Zauha will be playing the part of Anthony Hope. His character is a friend of Sweeny, played by Justin Wagner, and he falls in love with Johanna, who is played by Brooke Thernes.

Being involved in the one-act can take a lot of free time away from the students.
“Cross country is over, so it is getting easier to find time to memorize my lines,” Zauha said.

The cast practices every day during the week except Sunday. Anywhere from an hour to and hour and a half can be spent rehearsing each day.

The students aren’t the only ones who enjoy putting the one-act  play together.

“I like directing the one-act because it’s a good opportunity to get away from music,” Gathje said.

2006-2007

All-School Play Story

By Kayla Miller

Yutan High School all-school plays of the past have always featured a few main characters, but this year the play is mostly even in all of its roles, creating more of an opportunity for everyone involved.

“I like the roles being about even because the kids won’t be in competition with each other and they will just enjoy doing their part,” said director Carey Starns.

This year’s all-school play, “Surviving Reality,” is a comedy about an owner of a small local television station who decides to produce his own reality show in order to make millions. His show brings together two families by having them live under the same roof.  The Tuttletons from Park Avenue, N.Y., and the Hatter family of Hog Holler, Ky., face many challenges together to try and win the million-dollar prize.

Unfortunately for the Tuttletons and the Hatters, the producer of the show is doing everything he can to make the challenges almost impossible to overcome to make sure they don’t win the prize. The challenges include things like eating worms and cow eyes and exchanging clothes and accents.

Senior Chelsey Heldt plays Millicent Tuttleton, the arrogant, outspoken mother of the Tuttleton family. Heldt has high expectations for the play.

“I think the play is going to be magnificent,” Heldt said. “It’s going to be funny and people are going to enjoy it.”

Junior Jancye Trost is also involved in the all-school play and it is her first time participating in theater at Yutan. Trost plays Juniper Hatter, the youngest daughter of the Hatter family who is highly intelligent, but also the oddball of the family.

“I’m excited and nervous,” Trost said. “It’s going to be a good experience because this year it’s not the same people that are always in plays.”

Other students who play major roles include Sierra Peterson, Jordan Zauha, Matt Rossow, Kendra Johnson, Justin Wagner, Courtney Schroeder, Josh Schmidt, Jarrod Wagner, Kayla Waldman, Paige Schnoes, Alyssa Wagner, Walker Speckman and Cheyenne Nelson.
Like most plays, “Surviving Reality” teaches audience members a few lessons.

“The lessons are that people’s tenaciousness will make them come out the winner and also not to judge people by their appearance,” Starns said.

Starns plans to have play practice two to three mornings a week and the performances will take place April 13. and 14.

“I think the play is going to be great and the kids are going to excel,” Starns said.
 

Large cast creates high expectations

By Sam McLey

The Mississippi Swamp Root Traveling Show- to most people that probably sounds like a bad tourist attraction. But if anyone believes that, they have been misinformed.
 
The Mississippi Swamp Root Traveling Show is the one-act play that is being slowly pieced together to perfection. This years’ one-act involves everything from Swamp Root tonic, love and even murder.
 
 “I picked this play because it will make the kids work as actors and make them think,” said director Jon Gathjie.
  
Gathjie is the choir teacher at Yutan High School and he is coming back for a second year of directing the one-act. Although he loves teaching music, music is something that the one-act lacks. Surprisingly that is the reason Gathjie enjoys the one-act so much.
 
 “It gives me a chance to get away from music for the rest of the day,” he said.
  
This year, Gathjie has put together a cast of familiar faces. Senior Alyssa Wagner is back in the spotlight playing the female role of Juno (a female clown whose sister gets murdered).
  
Wagner has been involved with plays since she was in seventh grade and has been doing the one-act since her freshman year. According to Wagner, she thinks the best part about being in the one-act is performing at the competitions.
 
“It’s fun to get to see other plays and be better than them,” Wagner said.
Alongside Wagner, playing the hopeless-romantic role of Petrarch (a male clown who is in love with Juno) is freshman Jordan Zauha. Zauha was first introduced two years ago in Gathjie’s musical production of “You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown.”
  
 “I just enjoy all the fun people I get to be around,” Zauha said. Wagner and Zauha were both featured as the leads of Seymour and Audrey in the Spring 2005 musical Little Shop of Horrors, and are back playing the lead roles a second time around in The Mississippi Swamp Root Traveling Show.
 
 “They both fit the roles perfectly,” Gathjie said on his decision as casting them as leads again. “They both have grown quite a bit and are able to think more deeply about characters and their worth on stage.”
  
A noticeably large cast accompanies Wagner and Zauha. Other cast members include Bri Steinkruger, Matt Rossow, and Justin Wagner. This years’ one act provides a lot more lines for smaller parts and extras. Having a larger cast has its ups and downs, according to Wagner.
  
“It’s good that more people get to be involved, but it makes the practices harder,” she said.
 
 The Mississippi Swamp Root Traveling Show will be performed at a dinner show at Yutan High School on Nov. 6th, 2006. Also they will be going to the ECNC competition on Nov. 14th and the District competition on Nov. 29th.
  
Gathjie and his cast members all have high hopes for attending the state competition, and all agree that there will have to be a lot of hard work and effort put into this show.
  
 “I think there’s always a shot (at state),” Gathjie said. “And this is the cast and the show to do it.”