The Theatre Department staged its varsity comedy “Twelfth Night” from Thursday, Sept. 18, through Sunday, Sept. 21. The production marked the first varsity performance of the season and brought Shakespeare’s use of humor and mistaken identities to life on the Black Box Stage.
“Our Red Company has been rehearsing since the second week of school getting this show ready,” Assistant Director Whitney Bollinger said. “It is a high energy classic. Rehearsals have been a lot of hard work but so much fun. Shakespeare is a fun challenge to tackle.”
Leading the cast were Avery Morgan as Viola/Cesario, David Miles as Duke Orsino, Amelia Racca as Lady Olivia and Kyle Keddy as Sir Toby Belch. Together, they carried the fast-paced comedy through disguises, love triangles and witty wordplay.
The weeks of rehearsal demanded focus, growth and commitment. Morgan, performing in her first varsity show, quickly realized the challenge ahead.
“It was a lot to go into and there’s a lot of time commitment,” Morgan said. “I had to be fully committed to it no matter what role I got. I wasn’t expecting much, but I got the lead and that was pretty cool.”
As she grew into Viola, Morgan found her character’s balance of seriousness and humor.
“At first I played my part really seriously,” Morgan said. “But then my director was like, ‘Okay, you have to be more silly because I know you can. So I just had to find the lighthearted moments.”
For Miles, preparation of his character focused on the complexity of Orsino’s personality and relationships.
“I really have to think about how he actually felt,” Miles said. “It was a lot of visualization of what it would have been like.”
Exploring Lady Olivia’s emotions was key for Racca in connecting with her character.
“She’s very sad at first,” Racca said. “Then she starts to fall in love and meet new people and show that she is kind of crazy at heart.”
Keddy approached his character differently, focusing on timing and subtlety.
“It’s just really finding the moments to be funny and kind of interact with everybody,” Keddy said. “Even with one-word lines, it’s just how you deliver the line. Your facial expressions behind it, and your body expressions are what makes it funny.”
When the curtain finally rose, the weeks of preparation paid off in front of a near-full and sold-out show on Sept. 18.
“It went really well,” Morgan said. “The first night with the middle schoolers, I messed up a couple of my lines, but they definitely didn’t realize. Opening night was perfect, and everyone was saying it was our best one yet.”
The response from the audience was a driving force for the cast.
“The audience was laughing, and that gave us more momentum,” Keddy said. “It makes you want to keep going. Our timing was on point, and the serious moments hit too. Everything just flowed, and it surpassed my expectations completely.”
Behind the curtain, weeks of preparation made the show possible. Stage Manager Aiden Robinson, a senior in his first year in the role, explained that the process begins with auditions once the cast receives the script, followed by blocking rehearsals for actors and technical work for crews like lights, sound, and costumes.
Rehearsals stretched long into the evenings, as late as 8:30 p.m. after school, culminating in Tech Week, when the cast and crew practiced full performances with all lighting, sound, and technical cues in place. Tech Saturdays ran for 10 hours, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., where they spent the day queuing the entire production scene by scene.
“During Tech Week, you really see everything come together,” Robinson said. “It’s tense, but it’s also the most exciting part because the show finally starts to feel real.”
The rehearsal schedules often pushed everyone to adapt and support one another.
“Even when it’s long hours, everyone stays focused because you know what you’re working toward,” Keddy said.
Looking ahead, The Silver Company show, the program’s intermediate-level group, will stage “The 39 Steps”, as its next project. Auditions took place early September and performances begin Thursday, October 23. Meanwhile, the Red Company, the advanced varsity group, will be preparing for the Texas Thespian Festival and Musical auditions at the end of October.
The theatre invites all students to participate in the musical.
“You don’t have to be in theatre, and you don’t have to have any experience,” Robinson said. “It’s dance, choir, orchestra, and band all together, and it’s just such a great experience.”
