When loud screaming erupted from the band room, Drama Club president Sabrina Schmier didn’t panic. Instead, Schmier laughed, looked over, and shrugged.
“That’s improv,” Schmier stated matter of factly.
Drama Club is typically active in their meetings, which consist of theatrical games and activities, but around this time of year, the club is especially busy preparing for the annual spring play.
This year’s play will take place on two nights: Friday, April 28 and Saturday, April 29. The shows will each begin at 7 p.m. and tickets are $5 at the door.
The three-act play is titled “Play On.” The comedic show is a play inside a play; it’s essentially a grand exaggeration of every mishap, calamity and frustration that could occur during a production.
The 10 person cast features a variety of characters including Jerry, the director, Polly, the diva, and Billy, the hero. However, each role in the play is significant.
“Everyone plays a big role and contributes to everything. The plot could not function if one person was missing,” stated sophomore Haley Meece, who has been active in Drama Club and the spring play since her freshman year.
This year, Drama Club looked beyond Ripon High’s walls and hired a professional freelance director named Ashleigh Hiltabidel. Cast members agree Hiltabidel runs a tight ship, but she allows time for fun and relates to students well as a fellow self-proclaimed “theater nerd.”
Having a director from outside of Ripon High does create more logistical hurdles, but according to Schmier, it is worth it and the cast and Hiltabidel “clicked really well.”
The cast has endured auditions, line memorization, run-throughs and set building. There is still a need for a backstage crew and costume creation is barely underway. With only a couple weeks before the show, the stress levels are high, especially since the cast has only had about a month and half of rehearsals, an incredibly tight timeline compared to years past.
“A lot of it is still up in the air right now because we haven’t had much time… honestly, the play is kind or really close to what’s happening in real life right now,” stated Schmier with a laugh. “It’s getting close to opening night which is kind of scary, but based on the amount of time we’ve had and where we are, when you put it in perspective, it’s really impressive.”
Cast members and other Drama Club members highly encourage students to attend the show. They even hope that students watching the play will be inspired to join Drama Club in the future.
“It’s going to be a great experience for people who have never seen a play before. It can give you an idea of what a play is like when you’re learning,” said freshman Maria Soto.
Cast members guarantee the show will be hilarious and worth watching, so come out and support fellow Ripon High School students by attending “Play On!”
