It may still be a little while before everyone fully immerses themselves in the holiday spirit, but WJ S*T*A*G*E is well on its way into the festivities with this year’s show, “A Christmas Carol” written by Charles Dickens.
The classic tale follows old miser Ebenezer Scrooge on Christmas Eve where he is visited by three ghosts at separate times as they all try to turn him into the good-spirited man that he should be. Each ghost shows Scrooge parts of his life in the past, present and future, and by watching these scenes play out in front of him that he slowly starts to understand the true magic of the season of giving.
All of the students in the cast and crew, as well as director Colleen McAdory, technical director James Mulhern and producer Jonathan Bos have been working long hours to ensure the show will be as wonderful as possible.
One person in particular whose time is being consumed by the show is this year’s student stage manager, senior Micky Hoenig. Hoenig has been a part of stage crew since her freshman year and now as a senior, is the ultimate person in charge of the cast and the crew and makes sure everything runs smoothly when the two are put together.
“We’re working really hard to pull off an amazing show and we’re doing a lot of stuff we haven’t done before to really make it stand out,” Hoenig said.
A lot of different special effects will be used in order for the audience to fully submerge themselves into the story.
Senior Jacob Lu has been cast as the principal character, Scrooge. Lu is excited to see the final product of the show and knows that Walter Johnson is going to put on yet another great performance.
“Rehearsals have been productive this year. Having to get into the Scrooge mindset is actually pretty draining. The biggest challenge of being Scrooge is conveying the old, meanness about him. I’m not an old or mean guy. It’s a challenge to seem decades older than I am,” Lu said.
The British accents have been proven to be one of the toughest parts of the show for the cast. Everyone can agree that something that seems so simple can actually be the deciding factor on whether or not the show is believable and top quality.
“I thought because I’m obsessed with all things British that I would be amazing at it, but trying to read lines with emotion and adding blocking and the accent just scrambles everything up in your head. It’s fun though,” junior Siena Maxwell said.
Maxwell plays young Scrooge’s love interest, Belle. With the help of the Ghost of Christmas Past, old Scrooge relives the heartbreaking scenes of his young love with her.
Through all after school rehearsals to the eight hour Saturday rehearsals, WJ S*T*A*G*E is preparing well and is excited for everyone to come and enjoy the show. Evening performances are on December 1, 2, 8 and 9 at 7pm and a matinee on December 3 at 2pm.
