Students, staff and families flocked to the school auditorium for the UC High Theater Department’s first show of the school year, Little Women, which ran from October 9 through 11.
“Little Women follows the four March sisters, Jo, Amy, Beth and Meg. They face hardship and experience transitions as they get older, and it helps bring them together,” said Senior Stephanie Nuñez.
Theater Teacher Nia Hilton said, “The Theatre Club votes on the next year’s show the year before it happens, and students put together presentations about why various plays would make a good show, as well as how many people would be involved in the program. Then the club votes on which play they want to do, and I approve it.”
Hilton said, “They really wanted to do Little Women. They put together a presentation, and pitched the idea to me. Everyone voted, and Little Women got the most votes. The story itself is a classic. It follows four sisters that face the hardships of everyday life. I truly believe it is still very relevant today.”
Nuñez said, “I pitched Little Women, I’m so excited it got chosen for the fall play.”
Stage Manager Senior Delaney Churchill said, “We decided to do Little Women because it would be a fun challenge for costumes, and because it would give our actors the opportunity to have more serious roles. We try to have a balance between comedies and dramas, and I thought that this one would be fun for our cast members who have been in theater and known each other for a long time.”
Churchill said, “The cast and crew put in countless hours. As Stage Manager, I am very appreciative of all my tech and crew members for all their effort; the lighting crew as well, as sets for making everything look incredible, and our cast who have put in hours of work into each of their roles.”
Senior Sage Moreno said, “For rehearsals, we usually have a warm up that helps us get into character. Then we jump into things with running scenes and blocking. We usually get a 15 to 20 minute break when we have longer rehearsals, which is usually during tech week.”
Nuñez said that tech week is usually the most tiring week, because it’s when the actors are in costume, makeup and even practice with mics. However, it’s always very fun and rewarding with the amazing cast and crew.
Hilton said, “We usually do three plays: a fall play, a winter play, and our spring play. The spring play is usually directed by a senior who has had theatre for four years. Before that, the senior will help direct other shows so they get a bit of experience on the director side of things.”
Nuñez said, “I have definitely faced some challenges with balancing school and theater. It’s sometimes hard because it’s a really big time commitment. Many of the cast and crew go through this, but all the hard work pays off at the shows.”