Hollister
– San Benito High School students are turning murderous tonight
in
”
The Understudy,
”
the drama department’s first play of the season.
Hollister – San Benito High School students are turning murderous tonight in “The Understudy,” the drama department’s first play of the season.
“This is a story that makes fun of community and amateur theater, which is basically what we do,” said drama teacher Christina Plank. “So it gives us the opportunity to laugh at ourselves with our community in Hollister.”
The play, which opened last night, is a murder mystery and an homage to suspense greats like Agatha Christie and Alfred Hitchcock. The main character, “Delores,” is consistently cast as an understudy every time she auditions for a play. Fed up, she kills the leading lady so she can usurp her, but begins to slowly go mad when she forgets where she left the body.
“This is really a funny play,” said Dina Silva, who plays eccentric aristocrat Georgia Styles. “And it even makes you think.”
The cast is 30 strong with students from freshman to seniors participating. Originally the play featured a much smaller cast, but Plank wanted to get as many kids up on stage as possible.
“It was written by a teacher, so the script has some flexibility,” she said. “You can expand the cast to include more kids, and I believe that if you want to be involved in a play, you should be, so we added parts.”
Though the task of teaching lines, cues and blocking to 30 kids seems daunting, Plank said the older students on the cast were excellent role models for the underclassmen.
“The older students are really into what we’re doing, and when they’re focused and behaving, it’s like a net that catches everybody,” Plank said. “So they’ve been very helpful.”
Students have put hours of rehearsal time into the play over just five weeks, as well as countless hours memorizing lines at home – on top of the homework, sports or job responsibilities.
“It is really hard, and it does take a lot of time,” said sophomore Genesis Reyes, who plays Isabella Watts. “But once you’ve memorized something and you can get a look at all your hard work, it’s worth it. You’ve really accomplished something.”
Cast members say that “The Understudy” will surprise audiences with its wit and a twist ending.
“We actually didn’t know what was going on the first time we read the end,” said Sarah Smith. “We had to go back and read it. It’s really cool and not what you’d expect.”
As soon as the drama department finishes with “The Understudy,” students will begin work on the spring musical, “Starmites,” a sci-fi/fantasy about a girl who enters the world of her beloved comic books. “Starmites” will open in March.
Danielle Smith covers education for the Free Lance. Reach her at 637-5566, ext. 336 or ds****@fr***********.com
