“Shaken” Shakes FHS Stage

Shaken+Shakes+FHS+Stage

Halle Goldsmith, Writer

The very talented students of Drama Club grace the stage once again to perform a jaw dropping portrayal of an episode from The Penumbra Podcast called Shaken.

The students will be performing Shaken in the METG Competition on March 2nd at Attleboro High School. This competition has over 250 schools divided among different locations, it was actually hosted at FHS last year. If you missed out on the play when in was performed at Franklin High, you still have a chance to see the amazing cast in action. It is $12 for a day pass, meaning you can see 8 one act plays put on by local high schools.

Junior Chloe Selznick came across Shaken last Spring and presented the idea of turning a podcast into a play to theater teacher, Ms. Waters.  She had never done this before and was skeptical of the idea, she thought about it all summer and gave in to the idea due to the pressure of the students. Auditions were held in September, and even though they were all in agreement that this was the play for them, there were upcoming challenges that would test them.  

Turning a podcast into a play was already an obstacle, but the creation of the stage was a long and arduous journey, according to director Marushka O’Handley-Waters. Trying to bring a story to life when it isn’t intended to be acted out on stage was extraordinarily challenging for the cast and crew. They had intended on using a very minimalist stage, but during Christmas break Ms. Waters was in Boston and at the sight of a cracked door, she had an epiphany. Even then the road to getting her ideas onto the stage was not an easy one.

The ambitious cast and crew has been tirelessly working on preparation for this play since the day they got back from Christmas break, but in this short period of time they have managed to bring the words of Kevin Vibert to life on stage.

When interviewed Ms. Waters quotes a famous expression in theater,  one that reads, “it ain’t opening night unless the paint is wet.” She them adds, “We refined and made changes as late as yesterday morning… Literally.”

The production of this play was a journey, as it always is, and all their hard work clearly paid off. Franklin High students who went to see the show were mesmerized by the onstage work.

Freshman Alayna Bond says, “the play was very intense and interesting to watch. I loved how easy it was to follow, I would definitely go see it again.”