Lights! Camera! Action! Except, we don’t have too many lights, and we don’t have cameras. But do not be mistaken, there will be action! This fall the GHS Drama Club is responsible for putting on the best entertainment value in town. It is up to them to provide fun to the masses for a low price.

Drama club is more than just acting as a lot of members have never performed on the stage but still make large contributions to the play. “Without crew workers the actors have no props to hold, no costumes to wear, no set behind them. However none of that would matter because there would be no lights to show it,” says director Mr. Jenkins, “You need both [actors and crew] to make a successful production.”

. “It’s fun to be backstage,” says a seasoned stage crew veteran Ben Behlke “but sometimes you have to spend an hour or thirty minutes trying to figure out the sound.” These crew members face problems that the actors would not be able to solve.

However, the actors do put in a great deal of work to make a production. They work on memorizing lines and the flow of the play for hours each and every day after school. One actor will spend a total of around ninety hours on a production with technical work (set building, lights, sound etc), practices, memorizing lines outside of practice and performing. It’s like a mental sport, the actors must work very hard to reach their goals and work together to create what most people would call an amazing final product.

The directors are also important. They have a specific vision in their heads about how they want the play to look they need to convey that idea to the actors and crew members and hope that they listen. Mr. Jenkins expressed a difficulty that happens with most productions, “Some people don’t learn their ines as quickly or as well. Time spent on lines in practice is time that could be spent developing a better character.”

Sometimes it is difficult to make actors work together to create a good show. Every actor and crew member has limitations. Two time student director Meghan Flynn says, “It’s a lot of work, but it’s amazing to see the talent of my peers.” It is the duty of the directors to teach the actors how to act well and the crew members to carry out their specific responsibilities.

When a play comes together it is a great relief on the actors. “It’s like a big puzzle and you get satisfaction as the picture starts to take shape,” says director Mr. Jenkins, “It’s a good feeling… Just like a puzzle, when you’re done, you take it apart and get ready for another.”  All hard work finally pays off in the form of entertainment for others.