At six o’clock this upcoming Friday night, instead of dragging your grandparents to Bertucci’s or Thai Sweet Basil, you could give them a completely different taste of Andover. Two drama labs, “The Hawk” and “And Now For Something Completely Different,” will be acted out in the theater classroom, and all students and their families will be encouraged to stop by. “The Hawk,” written by Katherine Adams ’06 and directed by Melissa Chiozzi ’06, promises to be both entertaining and appropriate enough to take your grandma to. The play is a dramatized version of the writer’s own elementary school experiences, and was written for Ms. Braverman’s playwriting class, which both Adams and Chiozzi took. “The Hawk” centers around three very different fourth-graders who are sent to the principal’s office, where they are harassed by a neurotic executive co- coordinator who is out to get them in trouble. The cast includes Steph Clegg ’08 as headmaster Betty Polloflof and Hanna Gully ’09 as executive co-coordinator Priscilla Bellmore. The fourth-graders are played by Taryn Wiens ’09 as the oblivious Christie, Michelle Kwon ’09 as the uptight Gracie, and Sean Beckett ’08 as the sarcastic and rebellious Ricky. “It’s a really talented cast… we had fun.” says Clegg Chiozzi, a first-time director, was compelled to direct because “it was something I wanted to do before I graduated.” She describes the main theme of the play as the comical way that younger kids communicate with adults and with each other. The fourth grader’s opposing personalities did result in a comedic trio. Wiens’ Christie is “ADD,” according to Wiens; “she has absolutely no idea what’s going on, so she says things that get them in more trouble.” One such scene is when she asks Gully’s character to be her friend, exclaiming happily that she has 38 friends. “She’s a complete ditz.” agrees Clegg. Kwon’s character fills the traditional yet amusing role of the uptight, perfect girl. “All that she’s worried about is their punishments going on her permanent record,” says Clegg. According to Clegg, Beckett plays the “sarcastic kid, really goofy…the red hair adds to his character.” It is Beckett’s character who mocks Gully’s ridiculous character. Clegg, as the headmaster, is the easy-going person who “just wants to eat her donuts,” said Wiens. “I’m completely chill,” said Clegg, “I defend the kids- I even offer them donuts!” Contrasting Clegg’s character is Gully’s executive co-coordinator Bellmore, who is “basically a crazy women trying to get three fourth graders in trouble by convicting them of such things as conspiracy to commit a homicide and juggling on campus,” according to Clegg. The actors have been rehearsing for about four weeks. “The rehearsals were really laid back.” said Chiozzi. “I thought it was going to be intense…” said Clegg. “But it wasn’t at all…we rehearsed about twice a week for about an hour.” “It’s funny because the character’s personalities contrast…and there’s a lot of funny lines and situations,” explains Wiens. “People should come; I could even steal a donut for them! Plus, it’s Danny Silk’s last production.” “We’re all excited to see how it goes on Friday,” said Clegg enthusiastically. “We’ve all worked hard, and hopefully the production will go well. And it’s great to bring Grandparents to.” For a change, there’s Lilli Stein’s “And Now For Something Completely Different.” While not as PC as “The Hawk,” the play still promises amusement and entertainment. The cast consists of Andrew Yankes ’08, Mike Crivaro ’06, Chris Lim ’08, Victoria Glynn ’08 and Charles Francis ’07. Unlike “The Hawk,” the actors play many different, and sometimes eccentric, characters. The play is “a series of short comedy sketches from Monty Python’s Flying Circus,” according to Glynn. At a couple of minutes each, they really reflect the title of the play. Glynn describes it as “just a lot of random, unrelated, hilarious thing thrown together.” The play certainly gives actors the challenging job of changing from character to character. To prepare the actors for this, they had intense rehearsals, sometimes lasting up to two hours. “This upcoming week has a rehearsal every day,” divulges Glynn. The continual practice helped prepare the cast, which is made up of some very experienced actors. Glynn herself plays several characters, ranging from an air-plane steward, to the girlfriend of a transvestite lumberjack, to a drill-sergeant on a crusade in the defense of fresh food. “It’s the randomness of the play that really makes it so much fun,” says Glynn. To answer the question of whether its ok to bring your grandparents to it, Glynn says, “I’m bringing my grandparents to it.” However, some parts may be a little much for grandparents, such as the sight of Francis singing about a bra. The play, written by The Python Group, also incorporates elements from other plays, adding in music or props easily recognizable to mock past performances. A few of the lines are also passing references to other plays that have gone up this year, which some of the more devoted audience members may recall. Both plays promise to be a great blend of talent, comedy, and entertainment; perfect for a Friday night with the grandparents.
