All in the Timing
By Olivia LoPresti ('22)
This past month, North Rockland High School Drama Society produced another notable “fall” production, All in The Timing, a collection of plays by American playwright David Ives. In a 2013 interview with Playbill, Ives says while short plays are a “lost art,” his goal was to deliver “education in some particular aspect of theatre” while still providing comic relief to his audience. Written over six years (1987-1994), his collection features six one-act plays: Sure Thing; Words, Words, Words; The Universal Language; Philip Glass Buys A Loaf of Bread; The Philadelphia; and Variations On The Death of Trotsky.
The NRHS Drama Society successfully showcased the hard work of the cast, crew, and production teams, providing a creative outlet for their members. They put on an all-around incredible performance, all while staying safe with Covid-19 guidelines. Since they could not have an in-person audience, the Drama Society debuted All In The Timing as their first-ever live-streamed performance.
Director Mr. James Huppert says that while this year was very different it was “great to return to some sense of normalcy” for both him and the students. He also acknowledges that there were a few challenges throughout the process in terms of organization. Huppert says “figuring out how to cast and limit potential exposure” and “keeping numbers limited at rehearsals” became “a bit of a juggling act” but with the help of student directors and by choosing a play set up with six shorter one-act plays, they moved past these difficulties. He also adds that while “the benefits can be hard to see” he is “excited to take [their] venture into cyberspace.” Huppert claims that by live-streaming their performance, they added new online elements and look forward to getting exposure to “other elements of entertainment production.” Overall, Mr. James Huppert is grateful for the opportunity to put on a “fall” production and is glad that students get much needed “slices of a normal school experience.”
Edward Cigna (‘23), a student actor portraying Milton (Words, Words, Words) and Don Finninnagainagain (Universal Language), shares a similar sentiment to his director. Cigna believes the Drama Society faced some challenges due to restrictions and it took a lot more work than usual on their own to make the show work. However, he thinks the “play [came] along really well and everyone worked so hard on it.”
Grace Luisi (‘21), Cigna’s scene partner for both plays, appears as Kafka in Words, Words, Words and as Dawn in Universal Language. The student actor is also the production representative of the Drama Society. Luisi acknowledges some of the drawbacks this year in the Society; while there are not as many shared laughs and goofy jokes, “it’s easier to get work done” and “stay focused.” She also is very thankful that she’s contributed to a senior show and is amazed that she can “be surrounded by [her] friends [doing] what [she] love[s], which is not something many people get to do now.” Luisi also “feels like the show definitely pushed [her] further as an actress and gave [her] challenges to creatively work around.”
Edward Cigna ('23) and Grace Luisi ('21) performing in their two plays.
Harlequinn Selegean (‘21), student actress appearing in Sure Thing as Betty and Mrs. Trotsky in Variations on The Death of Trotsky, also feels that All In The Timing provided her with challenges to help her grow. Of her two roles, Selegean notes that her most difficult part to play is Betty. Describing Betty as a "jaded feminist book worm" who is "jaded and hard-to-get," she says that she is “never played a character that is more like [her]self” and that the role requires “thought and discipline” when the “character possesses traits that you dislike about yourself.” In line with her other student actors, she is very “grateful that this play was made possible'' and wants to shout out her director “for fueling the fire that is [her] passion for acting.”
The Drama Society production of All In The Timing was great, and they are looking forward to performing the spring musical, Guys and Dolls, and hope to see you tuning into their live-streamed performances April 16, 17, 22, 23, and 24!
“It is always more about the journey for us rather than the destination.”
-James Huppert, Director
The Six Plays
Sure Thing
Sure Thing (1988) is a short romantic comedy focused on two patrons in a coffee shop, Bill and Betty. The play cycles through endless variations of a conversation between them that is continuously reset by a ringing bell every time they say something that halts the conversation, giving the characters a fresh start, a second chance to keep the rhythm of the conversation and make a good impression. These conversations go through the rollercoaster of its central paradox, identity, as they experience conflicting tastes, pasts, relationship statuses, and personalities.
The Philadelphia
The Philadelphia (1991) is an amusing play focused on two friends in a restaurant, Al and Mark. Mark expresses his hysteria after experiencing many strange interactions throughout his morning. Al recognizes Mark’s quandary and explains to him that he is in “A Philadelphia,” a Twilight Zone state where everything is opposite of the norm. He calms down Mark and they enjoy their time together. However, very quickly the roles reverse, and Al too gets sucked into “A Philadelphia” and leaves the restaurant in a frenzy. The play draws attention to stereotypes in cities and highlights the idea of an individual’s mindset and their grip on reality.
The Universal Language
The Universal Language (1994) is a play featuring Dawn di Vito, an introverted stutterer, and Don Finninnagainagain, a con-man claiming to be the inventor of a fraudulent language called Unamunda, to rid her stutter. As the conversation between Don and Dawn continues, her stutter gradually disappears, and even after Don reveals himself as a fraud, Dawn continues speaking Unamunda, and the pair fall in love. The play emphasizes the prospect of creating a language to unite all people and implies that love is a universal language that all understand.
Philip Glass Buys Bread
Philip Glass Buys a Loaf of Bread (1990) resembles the rhythm of composer Philip Glass's minimalist style. Few lines are exchanged between Philip, the baker, Philip’s ex-girlfriend, and her friend, but they develop into a repetitive rhythm that accompanies robotic, clock-like choreography. The bread also symbolizes Philip’s unfulfilling life and desire for happiness or money.
The Death of Trotsky
Variations on The Death of Trotsky (1992) travels through eight variations on the death of Russian Revolutionary Leon Trotsky, each one a different final moment of his life. Each time Trotsky dies, similar to Sure Thing, a bell rings offstage, and the scene continues from where the last scene left off. It is easily seen that Trotsky has an ax in his head, but Trotsky does not know until his wife points it out, which adds to the comedic part of the play. It is eventually revealed that his gardener, a Spanish assassin, smashed the ax in his head, and, after a few different variations, Trotsky finally comes to grips with his inevitable death. He then settles matters with his wife and gardener and passes away, thankful that he was at least fortunate enough to live 24 hours after the attack.
Words, Words, Words
Words, Words, Words (1987) focuses on three intelligent chimpanzees who are the comedic study of an experiment conducted by an offscreen Dr. Rosenbaum. He tests a hypothesis that chimpanzees hitting keys on a typewriter infinitely will eventually write Hamlet, which is a hypothesis directly modeled after the “infinite monkey theorem.” The play travels through ironic and jocular conversation revolving around speculations on why they are there, as well as some expected comedic monkey business.