Hamber’s One-Act Plays Return
Photo Credit: Mackenzie Chung
Since the start of the pandemic, Hamber’s Drama Department has held one-act plays in the fall, as they were a safer alternative to plays and musicals.
“After COVID-19, it just wasn’t possible to run them,” said Sound and Lighting Club member Hudson Horwood (8). “Starting again next year, we will have full musicals [during the first term of school].” According to Horwood, the one act plays were specifically designed for actors to be able to practice at home during the pandemic, eliminating the need for group rehearsals.
This year, two performances will be held from Jan. 16 to 17 in Hamber’s new auditorium. Each night will feature two one-act plays: “And Then There Were One — Spoof”, a comedic variation of Agatha Christie’s classic murder mystery and “Anne-Arky”, which depicts high school actors’ fear of an all-seeing talent agent in the audience.
Actors and crew members had varying opinions on the new building’s shrunken drama studio.
“I definitely prefer the old drama room because it’s bigger,” said Naomi Russel (9). However, she’s satisfied with the auditorium, where the show will be performed.
This year’s move to the new school has brought about many changes not just for students, but also for the drama department.
“The process has been smooth, moving between the old Hamber drama studio and into the new one,” said Christine Thanh (10), adding that the need for personal mics during the one-acts has sparked ongoing discussion.
“Personal mics will help enlarge the actors' voices and let them be heard throughout the whole auditorium,” said Thanh.
“We have a total of around sixteen personal mics and we will probably use all of them. Thanks to our new sound console, we can use them properly,” added Horwood. “The personal mics are from last year, but some of them are newer, and [are] not more than five years old.”
Nevertheless, Horwood’s team still has to undertake significant preparation before the curtain can be lifted. “The crew for sound and lightning that will oversee the one act plays have not been finalized yet, although we will be doing more preparation closer to the performing date,” he said.