Wabasha-Kellogg Performing Arts CenterNine high schools, belonging to the Three Rivers Conference league, perform their one act plays for competition and to receive advice on how to improve to be ready for sub-section competition.
Performing were:
St. Charles High School - Competition Piece by John S. Wells
Kingsland High School - Wiley and the Hairy Man by Jack Stokes
Wabasha-Kellogg High School - Employees Must Wash Hands ... Before Murder by Don Zolidis
Southland High School - No Time by Laurence Klavan
Rushford-Peterson High School - Crisis, Inc. by Daniel Munson
Dover-Eyota High School - Class Action by Brad Straight
Chatfield High School - Four Little Words by Edward Finnegan
Fillmore-Central High School - The Brothers Grimm Spectaculathon by Don Zolidis
Lewiston-Altura High School - Oh What a Tangled Web by John R. Carroll
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A long and interesting day of plays.
Competition Piece was moderately well done. The cast did a wonderful job of projecting and staying in character, but the direction was flat, static.
I've seen Wiley and the Hairy Man before and I just can't find the attraction to this piece. Perhaps it's because I've never seen it done well, though this was closer than the last time I saw it. Sadly, the young boy who played "Wiley" came across as VERY gay, and that's about all anyone got out of it.
I missed both Employees Must Wash Hands and No Time, as my cast was preparing for their performance.
My students performed Crisis, Inc. and did a remarkably good job. Probably the best tyhey'd done to that point. It wasn't strong, but there were glimpses of what it could be.
Class Action also showed glimpses of possibility, but as it was, it was disorganized and confused. If the director could get a clearer picture of the whole, and the actors actually talk to each other rather than out to the stage, they will do well.
Four Little Words was just dreadful. Random actions by cast members with nothing to do on stage were a constant distraction. Screaming made dialog unintelligible. Fast, slurry lines from a major character with all the 'one-liners' was embarassing. Probably the worst performance of the day.
The best performance of the day was probably The Brothers Grimm Spectaculathon. They were energetic and had the audience absolutely adoring them.
Oh What A Tangled Web was another show that had promise but was in too much of a rehearsal stage still to be strong enough to compete. Dropped lines, missing cues, and confusion with the blocking had them suffering some.
Overall, an interesting collection of shows for the day. This was the first time I've attended this event, and it was certainly well worth our time. it was good to be in front of an audience and to hear where the laughs were going to come from.
Awards went to: Fillmore Central, The Brothers Grimm Spectaculathon - 1st place. Saint Charles, Competition Piece - 2nd place. Rushford-Peterson, Crisis, Inc. - 3rd place. Wabasha-Kellog, Employees Must Wash Hands Before Murder - 4th place.
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