Working together with students spanning from literally all grades in secondary (Grades 7-12) and even Grade 6 was a very interesting and valuable experience. The full secondary involvement in the production lead to more communication and friendships between grades. The play production has really developed many relationships between students, both strengthening bonds as well as creating new ones between students in the cast as well as in the crew.
Of course, bonding and interaction is not the main objective of the production. Throughout the few months we’ve worked on this production, I feel as though everyone in the cast has grown as an actor and performer. Everyone has grown to recognize their full potential and have learned not to be afraid of putting themselves out there!
I think our directors, Ms. Pryor and Dr. Percival, would agree with this sentiment and are extremely proud of how the production turned out. Our first performance, which was for the primary, was extremely nerve-wracking but everyone was prepared to knock it out of the park. Despite a few hiccups throughout the performance, we definitely rocked the show!
The second day, at our secondary performance, the cast got quite nervous (trying to impress their friends), but soon enough that obstacle was conquered, too. Our final performance was the most relaxed but also stressful for logistical reasons. Just before the show, 1/3 of the cast still needed to finish their costuming and make up! But when it came time for their entrances, no one missed their cue!
After all three shows ended, backstage was extremely chaotic as everyone was running around congratulating each other and scrambling to wipe off the very dark stage makeup. Everyone was ecstatic to have finally completed the production, but at the same time, everyone was nostalgic because we all knew that this would be the last performance of the year and for some, their last performance at IICS.
To summarize, we had an amazing time putting on the IICS’ rendition of “You Can’t Beat the House”. A huge thank you to our amazing directors Ms. Pryor and Dr. Percival for motivating us and for making all of this possible.
–Aramis Haggerty, Grade 11 Student