J. A. Williams (JAWS) High School students recently performed a pirate-themed production for community members and local school classes.
A musical comedy set on the high seas included pirates, along with echelons from high English society and male prisoners. The performance tackled the ideas of loyalty and friendship amidst conflict.
The predominately female cast for Captain Bree and Her Lady Pirates, was performed by the high school group at Portage College’s McGrane Theatre for three nights, last week.
“Opening night went amazing. I couldn't be more proud of them, honestly. They rocked the stage… I loved the music for it. It was a really fun musical. I knew that I had a lot of females to cast, so that worked well,” said JAWS Drama teacher Aimee Berland.
Preparations
With the high school's Drama class and other supporting classes having just five weeks to prepare for the first Dec. 13 show that drew over 30 guests, the play was a unique venture, Berland says, especially since the cast had to learn different accents such as the East London cockney dialect, to really get into character.
“We spent a lot of time giving all the characters a back-story and accents so the students acting could really feel the character on stage, which I think went amazing.”
Considering the play was set in a specific time period, appropriate costumes were also vital, says Berland.
“We worked with Theatrix Costume out of Toronto,” she says, having the company design and prepare the pirate and mid-century costumes the high school students performed in. “I gave them the vision and I’m so thankful these amazing costumes came together.”
Team effort
The set design, costumes, and lighting were a joint effort between JAWS construction, cosmetology and multi-media classes, explains Berland. And with more plays planned in the future, she is grateful to see students from all grade levels taking part.
“I think we've created that excitement again around being on stage and taking it through while seeing the growth from Grade 9 and 10 students and into Grade 12 now.”
Coming off the three-night shows, Berland says there are not any new projects in motion just yet. However, the students will be attending the One-Act Play Festival, a provincial showcase of performances with several high schools, and workshops for young actors taking place this April in Fort McMurray.
