A dead man coughing, a wall falling over, cast members being injured left and right. These scenarios sprout straight from an actor’s worst nightmare, but in “The Play That Goes Wrong,” it’s all part of the show. The production will run in the Performing Arts Center (PAC) from Nov. 6 to Nov. 10, with CKHS teacher, Zach Timm directing and senior student, Zee Gemmer acting as assistant director for their fall show.
The play has been on Timm’s list for some time; now with an experienced cast and crew, he has decided this is the year. As the theater arts teacher and director, Timm oversees everything the actors work on and works closely with Don Fox and Gemmer in the PAC.
Gemmer has acted in almost every show since their freshman year. As assistant director, they watch over the show and give tips to the actors to make sure the image of the play is rightfully captured and meets expectations.
“I’d say to expect to sit down for two hours and just laugh the whole time,” Gemmer said.
The play is a comedy about a troupe of actors called “The Cornley Drama Society,” who have a history of faulty shows. They attempt to put on their Clue-esque murder mystery, but instead, everything that could go wrong does. Sets will fall, props will get misplaced, and sound cues will be wonky and mistimed. These necessary tricks cause a looming issue over the production: things do need to go wrong, but at the right time.
“So, our hope is that all of the things that go wrong are scripted and that there is no room for error on our part, but it’s live theater,” Timm said. “Stuff could always happen—but it is really well written to the point where a lot of the stunts sort of lead into each other.”
Stunts like walls collapsing and doors breaking down are some of the worries the cast has. They need them to break, but they want them to break punctually. If the walls fall at an unscripted time, it could seriously derail the show or even hurt someone. With the play having such a focus on physical comedy, many stunts and scripted moments are created in such a way that if the particular audience enjoys them, the actors can improvise to add more, but that also makes the script more intricate. Within the hustle and bustle of the complex and meta production, some actors have found their scripts to be the biggest challenge.
“I think for me, it’s [difficult] playing two characters; essentially, because you’re playing the character that is playing the other character, it’s hard to differentiate,” Annabelle Haver, actor for Rachel/Ms. Colleymoore said.
While the actors may be having some difficulty working with the strenuous script, they also keep rehearsal lighthearted with jokes and humor from the play. These skilled actors assure “The Play That Goes Wrong” will be fun for the whole family.
“This is a comedy,” Timm said. “It’s a lot of fun. We’re going to see some really experienced actors who have been in lots of shows at the peak of their high school experience, all their talent on display.”
