The same as it ever was...
By: Sophia Ford
The saying goes: “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” The theater department at Mishawaka High School embodies this statement. While theater technology has changed, the theater community is the same as it ever was.
MHS band director and alumni Kaleb Chamberlin said, “It can bring a wide variety of cliques together because it seems like one of the safest places for people
to belong and perform together.” MHS thespian board president Jillian Helsel says, “there are so many things you can do [in theater] and it's so versatile. I feel like you appreciate the production more when you know how much work has gone into it.”
Each year the theater department does one fall play and one spring musical. Picking shows can be a struggle because there are so many factors to take into consideration. It is worth noting that the theater tends to choose and recycle older, timeless shows. For example, two years ago MHS performed Once Upon a Mattress, which Chamberlin recalled also performing during his years as a student, “It’s fun to see each generation bring them to life; It’s still the same script, same music, but kids are bringing new perspectives to it.” MHS theater department director Sarah Beason said, “Choosing the fall play and musical depends on a lot of factors: cost of licensing, cost of production, available casting, if the pit orchestra provides our instrumental students with sufficient opportunity, content, message, difficulty of music and dance, audience buy-in, student buy-in, etc.” MHS choir teacher Rachel Sutch added, “Interest is also important when picking shows. You have to look at gendered roles and who can play them. You also have to look at specific ethnicities if we have people to play them. We wouldn’t want to pick a show that only had male characters if we have a bunch of female identifying people in theatre and vice versa. We also wouldn’t want to pick a show that requires a cast of 75 people if we only have 20 people consistently auditioning for shows.”
The theater department has had many directors over its 100 years and with directors come changes. Sutch said, “Every director has their own ways of putting together a production. This does not make one way better than the
other, but there is always a learn-ing curve. It is just human nature to work better under certain styles of leadership and with certain personalities so that can also
make a transition tough. We are in a good place with the directing team as of now and Ms. Beason has such a vast experience on stage and off.”
Beason has a very strong bond with the students and the other people involved in theater, which allows for a positive experience for the members.“It’s my belief that high school students are capable of great things if they are given high expectations and the tools to reach them,” said Beason. “ I hope to teach students the skills and techniques of theater at a high level and not ever expect less of them just because it’s “just high school theater.”
Beason has been acting since the age of 11 and she studied acting, directing, and stage managing at Bethel College. She has been working professionally since
graduation, and taking part in Broadway- style productions.
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