Hawken Players Society Upcoming Plays and Musicals!
The Hawken Players Society (HPS) is excited to put on their annual play and musical again! This year’s fall production will be The Life of Galileo by Bertoldt Brecht and translated by David Hare, while the spring production will be Matilda the Musical, book by Dennis Kelly, and music and lyrics by Tim Minchin.
The Life of Galileo tells a story about scientist Galileo Galilei striving for the world to believe in his theory that the planets orbit around the sun. This play is a Brechtian style production, which encourages its audience to think and strives to make an impact. Mr. Gainley explains that he likes to throw “curveballs” at the students and himself, and he is excited to be challenged with Brechtian theatre. Get excited to come see the show from October 24th-27th starring Stella Connelly as Galileo!
If you are interested in participating in one of HPS’s productions this year, you can take part in the musical. The auditions for Matilda the Musical will be held in November. and the musical will be February 28th-March 8th. This production will be a completely new experience as this is the first time that Matilda is available for high schools to perform. If you have never heard of Matilda before, it is a musical about a girl named Matilda who realizes that she has the power of telekinesis and throughout the musical she uses her powers to stand up to bullies and her strict parents.
If you are interested in auditioning but are feeling a little nervous, don’t worry! Maya Kohrman, a senior who is part of crew, encourages that the auditions are not as professional as you might think and that upperclassmen would definitely be happy to help you during the process. She also adds that HPS is a welcoming community and there are usually no cuts in the productions. Luke Kim, another senior who participates in HPS, says to “just go for it”. He adds that “the HPS community is very welcoming and [everyone] will be happy and excited to welcome you to the community and support you in any way we can!”
There are many other ways to get involved such as helping with the sets on crew. Maya explains that “many students drop in and out throughout the year because of other commitments”, so if you help out with one production, you don’t have to feel pressured to join every production!
When asked about what she is excited most about for the year, Maya said that she is “excited to design the sets with other students, to meet new freshmen and new people to help, and for Matilda because [she knows] that it will be funny!” Mr. Gainley also added that something that is different about Hawken productions compared to those of other high schools is that the entire show is student run, and he says that he loves when the time comes to perform because he is able to sit back and enjoy the show! So, come out and audition or just come support both productions in October and late February/March!