One night is all it takes for MHS Theater to amaze you with this year’s docket of fall play(s). I say plays (plural) as each night contained three separate one-act plays with different casts—in an extraordinarily creative fashion.
Taylor Morris (‘25) said, “this is the first time Mead has had three different shows in one night. And it just truly shows the wide array of our actors. And showing all the acting capabilities we have is really special.”
In one night and three acts, MHS Theater performed (in order) a mystery, a comedy, and a drama; Sherlock’s Best, Every Novel You Read in High School in 25 Minutes or Less, and Yellow Wallpaper.
Theater performed these three one-act plays across the three nights of November 14th, 15th, and 16th.
Sherlock’s Best is a murder-theft mystery play in which Sherlock Holmes, assisted by John Watson, uses unconventional ways to solve a murder mystery involving busted busts scattered throughout London. The two sleuths eventually solve the mystery, uncover the murderer/thief’s motive, and go on to run away from a particularly saucy Hannah Bauman, who had helped them with the case earlier in the play.
In Every Novel You Read in High School in 25 Minutes or Less, a group of thespians, hired by the principal of a rather… poorly educated… fictional high school, perform a series of classic novels one would have to read in high school in order to teach them about said novels—of which they are supposed to read over the summer. The play shifts from daunting high school novel to daunting high school novel in a hilariously spectacular method. Throughout this performance, there were quite a few guffaws emanating from the audience as each show got more and more ridiculous in nature.
The final of the three one-act plays—which came after intermission—was the mind-pummeling short-story-turned-play: Yellow Wallpaper. The mix of lighting, the set, and the acting truly put together a masterpiece. Yellow Wallpaper left me stunned, dumbfounded, and chilled to the freaking bone.
But what’s the inspiration for these actors? What caused such a great string of performances? Well, it’s the community and the culture of the program that truly makes everything special.
Izzy Pacotti (’26) stated, “I think it’s just a very accepting environment where everyone’s in the same boat, so they can’t really be nasty to you. It’s just kind of like a welcoming environment where you don’t really feel judged or hated at all.”
The ability for each and every one of the actors to be comfortable with each other allows theater to thrive. It also allows the community to develop pre- and post-show traditions that make it so much more special.
“Before and after the play performance we go and eat somewhere, and that brings us together. I’m pretty sure I’ve had some of the best conversations of my life at Qdoba before a play performance, so I think that’s what really makes the cast close,” said Lilly Kaplan (’26).
In addition to the pre-show Qdoba talks, lay other traditions that the cast and tech members take charge of. The most revered one being the “compliment circle.”
“One of my favorite traditions that we do is the compliment circle, and that one includes the whole cast. We just stand in a circle and we all give each other compliments, and it’s really uplifting and cool to see. It feels like we’re all so connected, and is just so genuine to do for all the shows,” Bekah Dennis (’26), stated.
Eris Price (’25) had this to say about compliment circle: “we just get to say nice things about each other, and it brings us all closer together, and [compliment circle] makes us feel more connected to have that space to just chill out with each other.”
Many students have made positive remarks about the tradition, and it seems to be a fan-favorite amongst the theatre community.
The overall energy of the cast is important to the whole production, and that energy is amplified during show and tech week. The cast members are all greatly appreciative and loving of each other, and feed off this energy in order to lift each other up to create something special.
MHS Theater truly is a team.
Bekah Dennis (’26) sums it up for us, “the energy that gets brought out around tech week and show week just forms this incredible bond that’s really special: and I’m really grateful to be a part of that.”
