Hundreds attend one-night showing
By ELI LUTGENS
Publisher/Editor
More than a hundred family, friends, students, and area residents attended the NRHEG One-Act productions of “Clemson Bartholomew,” by David J. LeMaster, and “Ignoble Death,” by NRHEG’s own Deb Bently, on Saturday Feb. 4, 2023.
The performances were co-directed by teachers Solveig Sundblad and Deb Bently.
The evening’s opening performance was the first and only showing of “Clemson Bartholomew.” The 10 cast and crew members of this humorous farce presented business as usual at the “All News All the Time” network where, despite a brewing crisis in the middle east, the newscaster chooses to focus on the rumor that pop icon Clemson Bartholomew may (or may not) be dead.
The feature performance for the evening was the NRHEG 2023 contest play, “Ignoble Death.”
“Frank Noble has disappeared from a late 1920s train,” the program reads. “Did he fall? Was he pushed? Forced to wait as an investigation is carried out, members of the social elite reveal their true colors.”
And colorful it was!
The cast was nearly entirely female, with only two males cast. An interesting challenge for the co-directors who, when preparing for this winter’s performance, had to find a play which could accommodate the nearly all female cast.
“Last year we wrote in roles to add to the performance to accommodate everyone,” co-director Bently said.
“The idea of writing our own play started percolating then. Over the summer I asked Director Solveig if we should consider the idea.”
And consider they did – cast included.
Bently worked throughout the fall putting her idea onto paper, to be assessed by cast and crew as the season began, about mid-November.
With constructive input from Sundblad and cast, the play was molded into shape.
As contest time approached, the “tripledemic” raised its ugly head, causing lost practice time for some cast members and requiring last-minute adjustments for performances.
Another problem presented to cast, crew, and directors was the lack of stage time: Since the stage is attached to the gym and the gym is usually occupied by sports events, one act ensembles practice in the school cafeteria.
With only one evening of stage time carved out for “Clemson Bartholomew” prior to Saturday’s public performance, neither cast nor crew had much opportunity to learn the lighting and microphone cues. In addition, the original performance was scheduled for Feb. 11, but was moved ahead a week to accommodate the “Snow Week” dance.
“I’m proud of the cast, crew, and our performances this evening,” Bently praised. “Everyone worked together and overcame the many demands and challenges.”
Director Sundblad observed, “Thank you to our seniors,Shelby Johnston, Anton Domeier, Alexus Chambers, Olivia Kofstad and Tatum Smith Vulcan, not only for their years of work and dedication to the program, but their leadership in helping build the confidence of younger cast and crew members.
“It’s been quite a ride, with many ups and downs. But what counts is what the audience sees during a performance. We did well tonight, and I’m grateful for everyone who helped make that happen.”