Ghostlight

Behind the Scenes: Ghostlight 

Harper Johnson ('26)

Break a leg! This year’s fall play, Ghostlight, was a rousing success. After months of preparation and practice, it finally hit the O’Connell stage on the weekend of November 22-24, 2024. This comedic-thriller play was made possible by the talented actors, and dedicated tech crew, all led by the director, Ms. Midgley. But just how much work went into making this script a reality?

The process started months before the 2024-2025 school year even started. Director Ms. Midgley chooses the shows for the season about halfway through the previous year by spending a lot of time reading and selecting plays, which allows her to immerse herself in the world of the show she wants to choose. Once the new school year starts, and she has a play picked, auditions are held and a cast is picked. Once the cast list is set, the actors start to memorize their lines. Ms. Midgley stated, “I always tell actors that the real work begins once we are off-book (lines are memorized), because then they can truly immerse themselves in the world of the play and the minds of their characters." This year the main character, Garbiela (yes that is her name), was played by Junior Abigail Carbonneau. In previous shows that O’Connell has put on, she has been stage manager, but this fall she dipped into her acting abilities to give a stunning performance, and Grace McCabe (‘26) stepped up to take over as stage manager.

It takes a few weeks to get everything with the acting just right, but what about the other elements of the play? Tech crew is a whole other side of theater that is commonly overlooked. It consists of lighting, stage design, props, costumes, and sound design. While the actors are the heart of the performance, tech is the body of it. Preparations for tech begin around the same time as auditions, with the set design. Once the builders have a general idea of what Ms. Midgley would like for the set design, they get to making that vision come to life. With nothing but some wood, paint, and a dream, they can construct and design an entire set in around a month and a half. Most tech work happens during Tech Week, a week in which all members of the cast and crew spend hours rehearsing, setting cues, and adjusting technical elements. During this time, sound and lighting are able to work with Ms. Midgley on what cues she would like throughout the show. “Working on lighting means figuring out color, direction, intensity, and focus…” as Garbiela Nettles, the main character of Ghostlight, puts it. Lighting sets the mood and emotion of a scene, it also adds another layer that may not be achievable with acting alone. Sound does a similar thing, as it can depict the sounds in the theater that are best left to actual sound effects. Due to the speed of transitions between each of the scenes, lighting and sound played just as huge of a part as acting did.

Directing all these elements in this unique play was no easy feat. Ms Midgley stated, “I've never worked on a show that is so impressionistic in its storytelling. Having all the sound effects happen live was also different and a unique challenge to figure out.” And yet the show went on smoothly! The amount of effort everyone put into this performance was extremely evident throughout the weekend of the show. Personally, Ms. Midgley was “most excited for the audience to discover the twists and turns of the story, especially the big discovery about Fantine and Garbiela's relationship.” Truly it was a joy to watch the show and to slowly put together the plot through its quick-paced storytelling. 

Theater enjoyers can catch the next Bishop O’Connell theater performance this coming spring. The Musical Godspell features an exciting musical experience that promises to be a show to remember. See you at the next show!