GPS and McCallie Upper School students proved teamwork makes the dream work when it comes to performing comedy. This past weekend, during three performances, the cast of It's All in the Timing hit their marks while presenting short plays by David Ives.
"I was delighted with the work of the cast," said John Holleman, director and theater teacher. "All of the students were diligent about being prepared for the show and then that magic happened—for each performance they became more invested and more pliable within their performances, they came alive, and the plays began to respond with the audiences."
The audiences of Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights' shows laughed uproariously at the comedic timing of our student actors. From the sharp tête-à-tête between two couples caught up in a chance encounter ("Sure Thing") to the physical comedy employed by the casts of "Words, Words, Words" and "Variations on the Death of Trotsky," our young thespians truly flexed their acting muscles.
In "The Universal Language," Don and Dawn (played by Andrew Landsbergen and Jayden Doan) not only perfected their lines, but they also learned a new language: Un Amunda—a farcical, fanciful dialog that sounded part pig-Latin, part Orkan.
Twins Anna and Emma Henderson were perfectly cast as Bebe 1 & 2 in "Enigma Variations," while Charlotte Smith and Calista Geralds certainly could have passed as twins as Willa 1 & 2. Jacob Rousseau as nurse Fifi administered just the right dose of comedic relief in the more serious installment.
In "The Philadelphia," senior Noah Ware as Marcus (supported by Joshua Smith as Al and Leightta Sherrill as the waitress) stole the show with his acting chops.
After wrapping up his first production as a GPS teacher, Mr. Holleman expressed his delight with not only the acting but also the behind-the-scenes effort each put into the success of the play. "I was proud of the ensemble attitude toward each other's plays as they took care of their castmates' scene changes, hair, and makeup under the authority of Sierra Cooley (stage manager) and Eve Smith (production assistant)," he said.
This weekend, McCallie will host a Woodstock-inspired performance of William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, Thursday and Friday at 7 p.m., and Saturday at 2 p.m., in Walker Theatre. Tickets will be available at the door. And then save the date for the Upper School musical, April 13-15, performed at GPS Frierson Theatre.