Students putting the final touches on a wedding scene.  — Photos by Liam Beretsky-Jewell

By Liam Beretsky-Jewell

Thursday, March 13, will be opening night for the Highlander Theatre Company’s second major production of the 2024-2025 school year. Dozens of students have been hard at work putting their spin on a Shakespearean classic: Much Ado About Nothing, a drama-filled romantic comedy that explores themes of love, sabotage, and deception, following the tangled love affairs of two young couples.

Tickets are pay-what-you-can and can be bought on the HTC website or at the door before the show. Performances will take place in the high school’s Centennial Auditorium at 81 Highland Ave.

A Shakespearean classic set during a more contemporary time

Much Ado About Nothing represents a departure from the more contemporary works that HTC has put on in recent years, taking the audience on a journey narrated entirely in Shakespearean English.

Although Much Ado is traditionally set in the 16th century, HTC’s spin on the show is set “in a time period that’s more contemporary – basically not Elizabethan and not cell phones,” said Deneen Scully, who is helping coordinate costumes for the show. She says the costumes are “not of a certain time period. The students have kind of made their own style, so it’s kind of a romanticism, but with a little bit of edge. They’re going for kind of timeless vibe.”

The students have been “reworking existing pieces that we have and adding to or changing them, putting things together that maybe didn’t always go together,” said Deneen.

She describes the plot as “a comedy – it’s really witty, it’s funny, and the actors are really larger than life. As we like to say, in Shakespeare, tragedy is where everyone dies at the end, and comedy is where everyone gets married. This is definitely everyone gets married.” However, aside from its happily-ever-after ending, Much Ado deals with some more serious themes. “It’s really all about masks and deception, and how we decide who we trust,” Hunter said. “And, in some ways, how we decide who we let deceive us.” The play deals with themes of sabotage and bias, where “both the good guys and the bad guys play tricks on each other, but we think some are good and some are bad.” 

Much Ado is director Hunter’s first time working with HTC, and she has learned a lot about the theater’s practices from working with long-time theater students such as senior Anya Miller, who is stepping up as stage manager of this production. Hunter says the production’s “biggest success is just how incredibly talented and professional all the performers, and particularly the technical crew, are. It’s been really exciting to work with them.”

A number of the tech crew heads this year are also relative newcomers to HTC, including freshmen Natalie Zielinski (lighting) and Mi’sol Membreno-Gomez (set).

Students celebrating the birthday of assistant stage manager Michala during afternoon rehearsals.

A cast perspective on the play

The shift to working on an Elizabethan-era play has the greatest impact on the cast, who must engage in dialogue written almost 500 years ago–a challenge the cast are ready to take on. “To be honest, this is Shakespeare, so I don’t always know what’s going on sometimes, but that’s okay, because it’s interesting,” said Serena Wong, a senior performing as Ursula in the play and helping with set crew. “I think there is value in doing old works with fancy language like Shakespeare. It’s been a great challenge!”

Students are excited to be working on this classic. “I actually really like this show. It’s my favorite Shakespearean play, and I’m really excited to be working on it,” said Natalie Zielinski, the head of lighting.

Much Ado will be HTC’s first Shakespearean production since before the COVID-19 shutdown. “I’m very happy to have the opportunity to do Shakespeare because I haven’t in high school before,” remarked Calla Taylor, a senior who is playing Hero. Much Ado will be the last full-length production in high school for Calla and her fellow senior cast members, making it a bittersweet experience. “This really is my last show here, which is kind of crazy, and very surreal. I’m excited for new things, but it’s also going to be really sad to be leaving this community,” she said, reflecting on her time working with HTC over the past four years. She plans to continue pursuing theatre in college.

The environment backstage

One thing that consistently comes across on stage during HTC’s productions is the high degree of harmony between the cast members and crew. It is a testament to the students’ dedication and the positive environment evident backstage and during rehearsals.

“I feel like we’re very respectful towards each other. It’s a very pleasant place to be,” said Natalie, shortly before the group convened for a surprise celebration of assistant stage manager Michala Thomas’ birthday. “It’s very fun. We have a very chaotic, but fantastic environment,” said Serena Wong, referencing the joking and dancing that help them get through long afternoons of work and rehearsals.

These rehearsals sometimes run late into the evening, which has helped contribute to the strong sense of community and kinship among the cast and crew. “I think it actually kind of brings people closer together. When you’re like having dinner together every night … When you’re spending that much time together,” explained Calla.

What the audience should know leading into opening night

Shakespeare’s works have a reputation for being somewhat hard to follow. To some, the plot and dialogue of Much Ado may come across as a “little confusing at first, but if you’re paying attention, you get it, and it’s a comedy,” said Natalie. Director Hunter hopes the audience will be “pulled in” to the show. “The students have done a good job really inhabiting their characters,” she explained. She acknowledges that some may feel intimidated by Shakespeare, but believes the fun and light-hearted nature of Much Ado will help “make Shakespeare feel more accessible” and enjoyable to people.

Calla added, I think if [people] come in with an open mind, ready to enjoy it, they’ll have fun. I think it should be a great show.”

This slightly abridged version of Much Ado has a runtime somewhere in the ballpark of 90 minutes.

Showtimes are as follows:
Thursday, March 13, at 7 p.m.
Friday, March 14, at 5 p.m.
Saturday, March 15, at 2 p.m.
Saturday, March 15, at 7 p.m.

Tickets available at: https://www.highlandertheatre.org/