The high school production “The Play that Goes Wrong” will take place Thursday, Nov. 17 at 7:00 p.m., Friday, Nov. 18 at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, Nov. 19 at 2:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. in the Schottenstein Theater.
Director Rebecca Rhinehart said that the play follows the story of a community theater putting on a show called “The Murder at Haversham Manor.” The cast members of the play are trying their best, Rhinehart said, but things just seem to go horribly wrong.
“All of those things that seem to happen in shows like doors getting stuck, props not being where they’re supposed to be, and things falling off the walls happen,” Rhinehart explained.
She added that the cast continually repeats and messes up scenes, so it should be fun for the audience to watch.
Rhinehart said the cast has already started rehearsin
g, but the crew will only have two weeks in early November to build the complex set.
Senior Samuel Grayson, who designs light, sound and the set, said he is excited to work on a unique project.
“We’re looking at how to have a chandelier crash into the stage and the rigging for that,” Grayson said. “We need to figure out a way for it to fall in safely and not actually break but appear to break.”
Grayson added that unlike most plays, the set is not just a backdrop for the play, but an interactive element for the actors.
Grayson explained that he is most excited to see the show come together on opening night. He said he thinks the audience will enjoy the elaborate set, the moving parts, and the story.
Senior Charlotte Turner, who plays Annie, said the play has an original ensemble cast of eight.
“There are also stagehands who don’t have lines, but are doing shenanigans around the set,” Turner added.
Rhinehart explained that the additional stagehands play crew members for “The Murder at Haversham Manor,” but they end up doing more harm than good in trying to help keep the show together.
Grayson explained that in addition to the 14 actors, crew members include build crew, run crew, lighting and sound designers, mic and sound board operators, ushers and mic wranglers.
Junior Graziella McGuire, who plays Denise, explained that because of all the physical comedy, the stagehands and set are integral to the show.
Turner noted that having a small cast of eight speaking roles and six stagehands will make the highly physical show easier.
“We all like each other and all trust each other and because of that, we can have a lot of fun with the physical comedy,” Turner said. “There’s quite a few times when people get beat up or fall off of things.”
McGuire added that she also liked the ensemble format and felt like she got to work on her acting a lot because of the small cast. Rehearsals for the main cast of eight began a couple weeks before the stagehands started, McGuire said, so she and her castmates got a lot of Rhinehart’s time and feedback.
Rhinehart agreed with McGuire and Turner, explaining that her rationale for picking two fall high school shows – a play and a musical as opposed to just a play – was so that each of them could have a small cast.
She added that the high school might be one of the first schools to perform this show. The show is still on Broadway, and Rhinehart said she got the rights for it on the first day they came out.
Rhinehart, McGuire, Turner and Grayson agreed that the show will be hilarious and entertaining.
Grayson explained that the play will be unlike previous shows the theater has put on, and he has high hopes for the outcome.
“I’m sure the acting will be excellent,” Grayson said. “And the set has a lot of moving parts, which is going to be really interesting to see.”
