How to ACT During A Pandemic

DISCLAIMER: Most of this was written before the Fall Play COVID scare and the entire school going virtual. As of today, there is a plan to pre-record our show and present it virtually on Friday, Dec. 11. I do give an update at the end. 

Fall Play is still happening this year even though times are increasingly changing. We are putting on a radio show called “Vintage Hitchcock” based off of some of Alfred Hitchcock’s most famous thrillers. I interviewed our director Miss Bronder, student directors, cast members, crew, and Mrs. Adams!

First, I talked to, Miss Bronder, or as we know her, J Bron, to get an inside scoop on how putting on a show in the middle of a worldwide pandemic has been.

How difficult was it to find a play that would be suitable for social distancing and masks?  I chose to look at Radio Plays because I knew we could maintain social distancing and still perform a play, even if we weren’t blocking it traditionally. Once I chose the format, there weren’t a ton of options, so I probably read about 10 radio plays and decided on Vintage Hitchcock because I liked that each play had a different feel; there were a ton of roles for students; and crew could be involved not only by building the set, but by creating the sound effects and running the sound effects live as a part of the show, since they wouldn’t be able to follow their usual behind-the-scenes roles.

What has been the number one challenge as the director of the show in terms of the pandemic?  The number one challenge has been trying to control something I have no control over: the Pandemic. We are doing everything we can to stay healthy and safe, but there are so many variables with CoVid-19 that we can only do so much. I have had to ease up on my perfectionist, Type A personality, and that is not easy for me!

How many people can watch the show in person?  The state guidelines are 20%, so 136 people. But in-person will be limited to family of cast and crew, since 31 students getting the opportunity to buy 4  tickets each = 124, then when you add in the directors and Mr. Smith’s filming crew, you end up pretty close to capacity.

Have there been any unexpected benefits to putting on a show that required the precautions?  I would say only in terms of knowing we have to have a limited set and few costume changes. It’s been very challenging to look at directing in a new way, and it’s allowed Mrs. Adams and I to be creative and really think about how everything could work.

What do you think of the script?    I love the script! I was really only familiar with The 39 Steps, but as someone who loves Film History and teaches a course on it here at Knoch, it allowed me to access my love of Old Hollywood and pay tribute to one of film’s greatest directors.

How big is the cast?     There are 21 students in the cast and 10 students in stage crew.

Is there anything else you’d like to add?  I have really enjoyed working with the fall play cast and crew. They are taking on a huge challenge by staging a show amidst this chaos and uncertainty,  and they have fully embraced this show and are not only staging a live radio play with three different stories, but Izzy Froedtert and Abby Mcauley filmed two commercials for the show, and Evan Weston and Brenden Smith wrote the music for the commercial jingles. For the first time, we got to go into the recording studio, and with the help of Mr. Russell, recorded and mixed the jingles, which will be played during the commercials.  I encourage everyone to purchase a streaming ticket to the show! You can watch it from your living room in pajamas, and see your talented classmates at work. You can purchase streaming passes at https://www.showtix4u.com/event-details/42356.

Cast member Izzy Froedtert (a senior this year), who has been participating in Fall Play since her sophomore year as both director and part of the cast, on her thoughts about this year’s show:

In my interview with Saxonburg’s most famed rockstar, Jason Brahler, I asked him how different it’s been being a member of stage crew.

How has putting the set together been different this year?  It hasn’t been too different, I’d say the only thing different is the masks and the fact that sound is almost all gonna be done by the whole crew.

What do you think of the set and backdrop so far?  It’s alright, it’s much smaller than we’ve done before like “Almost Maine” was fairly big but still not the biggest.

What is your favorite part of the set or backdrop?

There’s this radio sign that’s pretty cool and I think there’s gonna be lights on it like

strung on it (unless that was taken out).

What is the color scheme for “Vintage Hitchcock?”  It’s kinda like that black and white, golden age stuff where there’s gold/red/black/white.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

Doing the sound boards is pretty fun and I always enjoy doing it.

I also talked to student director, Jessica Sentgeorge who actually attends our practices virtually through Google Meets.

Is it hard having one student director online during practice while the other is in person?

Having one student director online and the other in person is a bit of a challenge this year.  When I student directed both Almost, Maine and Nice Work if You Can Get It, I was an in person director.  I worked alongside the other directors where we could all sit down together and discuss everything before we made any decisions about the show.  There are advantages and disadvantages to having one of us online and the other in person.  As an online director I am able to observe the rehearsals from how the audience will see them.  I am able to base my notes and observations to help the cast and crew with their specific parts in the show.  I liked working with both Izzy and Paige in person because we can communicate easier and there are two of us to help with costumes and props.  My being online as a director does pose the disadvantage because I am limited as to what I can do to help with the show.

Do you feel more responsibility for the play this year?

I absolutely feel far more responsibility for the play this year.  Last year when we did Almost, Maine, Izzy and Miss Bronder both taught me a lot about direction and it was a huge learning experience for me.  I was more responsible for costumes and props during the show.  This year, my responsibility is on the psychology behind the characters and notes to help the actors.  I am able to present new ideas and changes to be made for a better show.

How are things coming together?

I think everything for the play is coming together well.  We are doing the radio show of Vintage Hitchcock so the setup is very different this year.  The character interaction between various characters and the connection with the scene depends on the vocal acting abilities of the cast.  The characters are each specific and in the scene for a purpose.  The set is very limited, and so are the props, so the story must be told instead by the voices and costumes of the actors and actresses.  I discuss notes with Miss Bronder and Mrs. Adams, and then the insights from all of the directors go into the theme and background of the show.

What has been your favorite part of student directing this year?

My favorite part of student directing this year has been discussing the notes with Miss Bronder.  I go through the script and mark notes on the characters and their interaction with each other.  I then watch the scene and make notes on the characters and the actors.  After the rehearsals, Miss Bronder and I go over the notes and development of the scene and the characters.  I love our discussions of the deeper emotions and how to have the characters interact.  She is a very talented director and we are lucky to have her.

What do you miss about student directing in past years?

I miss directing in person.  Izzy and I were a great team during Almost, Maine and I miss the interaction with the cast.  It is difficult to not be able to see them all the time.  I am so incredibly proud of our cast, crew, and directors.  We are all a great team.  After directing Nice Work if You Can Get It, I learned a lot about audience perception, and I learned more about how important interaction between the cast and the directors is.  I miss being able to see everyone in person and give notes in person.  Miss Bronder gives notes that we discuss.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

Fall Play has been an incredible experience for me.  Having been in cast for Brothers Grimm Spectaculathon, crew for Clue, and now a director for Almost, Maine and Vintage Hitchcock, I have gotten great insight into just how important the cast, crew, and directors are.  Each are essential to every show: with no cast we have no characters and no story, with no crew we have no lights, no sound effects, no set, and no microphones, with no directors, we have no insight into the play, and no one who does all of the behind the scenes work, no one to do the blocking, or to help come up with character motivation, we would also have no costumes and no props.  A lot of times people discount crew and student directors, but they don’t realize that the directors do a lot with advertising and everything that goes along with the shows, while the crew works incredibly hard to make the show a great performance.  That is one thing I love about the fall plays here at Knoch, we are all equal and we all work well together.  Everyone here knows that Mrs. Adams, Mr. E, and Miss Bronder all work very hard and so does everyone involved with the show.  I’m proud to call myself part of Knoch Performing Arts and everyone involved with the shows should be too.

Lastly, I talked to Mrs. Adams, the goddess of backdrops, if the scenery aspect of the Play has been changed at all.

What has been done differently this year with Stage Crew?  

Stage Crew meets on the stage area of the Auditorium, all students are required to wear masks during Crew.

Every student’s temperature is taken at the beginning of the work session.  Students practice safe distancing as they work.

We only meet twice a week so the job of creating the set is a concentrated effort to finish a certain amount of work each time we meet.

Is there anything you can tell us about the set?

The set is interesting because Ms. Bronder and I had to think about keeping performers six feet apart when creating the design.

This play takes place in a Radio Studio so that led to the construction of pieces that would be found inside a studio.

It was challenging but has come together nicely by adding vintage pieces we had stored in the loft of the stage.   You will be surprised

by the poles that the crew created and of course the studio itself.

What has been the best part of the production so far?

Working together with the students and Ms. Bronder has been the best part of the production.  This year we have come together

as a cast and crew working to make this unique situation a creative use of our talents.  It is always a thrill to watch the play and its actors and crew

reach within themselves to produce the best show possible.

How many students are in the stage crew?

There are twelve talented individuals with a lot of energy and ideas who work well as a team.

What kinds of things have been difficult to adjust to when putting together the set while practicing social distancing?

Well actually I plan the work and the crew divides up and produces the pieces we will be using.  The set pieces are quite large

and most of the time students really aren’t close because they were separated by wooden flats that are 4×8 or by columns that were 9 feet tall.

When we worked  students worked individually to produce many of the set pieces.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

Yes, this year the crew will be in costume and be performing with the actors.  The crew will create the sound effects from tables placed six feet apart in front of the stage.

Purchase a ticket to watch this play as a Live Stream Production and enjoy three thrilling Alfred Hitchcock Plays.

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I want to add some of my own personal thoughts since I’ve done Fall Play for the past four years now.

I’ve met some of my closest friends through the plays we’ve put on, and the memories I’ve made will always hold a treasured place in my heart. It’s really sad to do your last play with so many restrictions, but we’ve all tried to make the most of it. I’ve still had so much fun this year and it’s going to be a painful goodbye.

Fall Play is my favorite extracurricular activity I’ve ever done. It helped me come out of my shell 9th grade year when I was but a mere freshie. Being new to Knoch, trying out for the play was one of the best choices I’ve ever made. I made my first new friends in the cast and grew my social skills that were deeply lacking when I was 14 and everyone scared me. The cast and crew every year are some of the most hard-working, dedicated, and inclusive group of people I’ve been so blessed to have the opportunity to not only work with, but befriend.

I want to personally thank Brooke Lassinger and Sadi Shearer for letting me “adopt” you your freshman years and be somewhat of a mentor. By letting me help you with trivial tasks in high school, you have taught me so many new things and helped me immensely.

I also want to shoutout my fellow senior girls Abby McCauley, Izzy Froedtert, Paige Degreen, and Jessica Sentgeorge for sticking through it every year and making it a blast. You guys are the best and Play would simply not be as fun without any of you.

Don’t worry, Jillian, I didn’t forget about you! I have to give Jillian Stephens her own couple of sentences because I wouldn’t have auditioned that first time if she hadn’t encouraged me and done it by my side when we were both brand new and only knew each other. Though it seems like I’m the one constantly dragging Jill around places and suggesting we do stupid things, I really wouldn’t be writing this article if it weren’t for her and her friendship.

And thank you to Miss Bronder for being an amazing director each year and providing a happy and welcoming environment no matter who is involved. Your hard-work and dedication do not go unnoticed by any of us and we appreciate everything you do whether it be taking time out of your day to help with lines or an accent, buying the cast donuts on early Saturday morning rehearsals, or giving me directions to the office in 8th period Theater Arts, as I was crying my first day because I was so overwhelmed and THEN showing me where my bus was. It’s impossible to say that putting on our shows would be the same without you. It’s rare to find teachers care so much about their craft and students, and I know countless other students will be inspired and grow valuable rates of confidence through Fall Play, just like me.

UPDATE: It’s currently 3:05 P.M. on Thursday, Nov. 12. Everyone in Fall Play has been quarantined because one of us sadly got the virus.

We can’t go to school this week or next week, show week. Our dress rehearsal we were going to film has been cancelled. We won’t have another practice in person. We won’t have an audience. We won’t get to hear the applause one last time. We won’t have our cast party at the church. Everything feels like it’s being taken away and it’s really hard.

As a senior, I finally understand what everyone was complaining about last year when their senior activities got cancelled. I told my friend Abby that I had a strong feeling that would be our last practice together and I turned out to be right. I tried to make the most out of that practice because I just had a really bad feeling.

I’m glad I did. It’s very sad to think that this is the end of my Fall Play career and none of it will feel real on show night. It feels like all of our hard work has gone down the drain and what’s the point of a show without an audience?

Those of us that do theater rely on that applause each show for a serotonin burst and the assurance that we are talented and recognized by our community. We have put in hours of hard-work, even though it’s overlooked by most of our student body because they “dOn’T LiKe pLaYs” or “tHeAtEr kIdsS aRe AnNoYiNg.”

Try to think of all the time we put into our shows and how much it hurts when it’s suddenly ripped away from you whenever others refuse to wear masks or avoid huge social gatherings. Or better yet, think of the people dying alone because their family can’t come see them.

FINAL THOUGHTS. . .

DISCLOSURE: These following statements are my views and do not necessarily reflect those of the SBCSD, Knoch High School or The Knight Times.

I have lost so much respect for some my peers this year as many either don’t wear your mask over your freaking nose, complain about how the administration is handling things even though 99% of this is out of their control, blame the virus on the leftist agenda that will surely lead to our entire nation’s downfall, but yet you continue to push for your sports, rallies, and parties.

Stop being selfish and grow up. This is not How to ACT During a Pandemic!