Taft Charter High School Drama will be performing their play, “The Curious Incident of the Dog In The Nighttime” this Fall on December 5th, 6th & 7th, with previews on Thursday, December 4th after school. I strongly and proudly declare that this play is set to be stupendous. Including talented actresses and actors along with beautiful stage scenery, you won’t want to miss this year’s fall play.

However, before we get to this production, we have to pull back the curtains and distinguish behind the scenes. We have to acknowledge the amount of effort and energy exerted, in order for the show to be stupendous. Like we were always told by our parents and teachers when we were younger, practice makes perfect. So I’m here to share with you the hardworking process that it takes to put on a wonderful piece of theater.

Professionals work hours in the studio rehearsing for their upcoming projects. According to Playbill.com, “The actors work for seven of those hours[…]Big musicals rehearse in the studio for four to six weeks[…]”. (While breaks usually last up to 10 minutes). Actors and actresses do really work in order to feel the true triumph of a successful play or musical.

Despite not being professionals just yet, students at Taft Charter High School work just as hard and maybe even harder. Why say, maybe even harder? The budgets for professional plays on Broadway are much higher than a High School’s, yet Taft’s set designs and props are incredible. And the students are the ones who put their blood and sweat to build every one of those designs or props that you see on the stage.

“Sometimes people don’t realize that it’s student-run, there are no professionals or adults coming in to do the work for us. We work very hard for this production and learn life skills we’ll use later on in life”. 12th grader, Dashiell Hamblet said. With student based crews for set design, lighting, and stage management, the behind the scenes crew is working non stop to make the show the best it can possibly be. 10th grader Melodie Ostorga, stated, “I’m 100% committed, my whole heart is in this”.

Rehearsals begin after school 3:30 through 6:30 every day but Tuesdays. These hours of rehearsing could limit students from other things. For instance, outside activities and family events, or the biggest enemy of them all, homework. In spite of this, students manage to work around their schedule. Dashiell Hamblet, 12, said: “We all complain about it, but in the end, we all love doing it. This is why we’re here”.

As time-consuming it may be, passion and spirit are what drives these students to work. Most importantly, they work together. No one gets left behind… “Everybody works together, it’s teamwork,” Melodie Ostorga, 10. Each and every one of them is determined and willingly find time from their limited amount to help one another. Hamblet also stated, “It’s the most rewarding feeling”. Hard work truly accomplishes all and the work is worth it in the end.

So make sure to see Taft Charter High School’s fall play, ¨The Curious Incident of The Dog In The Nighttime ̈ this December!