Since she was little, Sadie Sadler ('22) has always loved seeing musicals and plays. She also has a strong passion for creative writing. So, combining those two interests, in the summer of 2020, Sadie began writing her own documentary theater play (theater that uses pre-existing documentary material as source material for stories about real events and people, frequently without altering the text in performance) using the interviews from the Oral Histories Project. Currently titled The Packer Project, the play is about 12 Packer community members and their experience with COVID-19. Since the summer, Sadie has continued to write and revise her play. In January of 2021, Sadie turned her project into an Independent Study with theater teacher and head of the Arts Department, Mr. Boag, to gain professional feedback and guidance. On May 10, 2021, Sadie conducted a Zoom table read of her play with volunteer Packer student and faculty actors. On May 18, 2021, The Packer Project was performed virtually in front of the Packer community. To watch the performance, click on the video below:
Actors and Roles (In order of appearance):
Isabel Levine ('24) -- Sadie (10th Grade Student)
Su-Ling Huang -- Ms. Jiang (MS. Chinese Teacher)
Naomi Mcleod ('24) -- Ms. Morse (US Dean)
Nola Sloan ('21) -- Anna (12th Grade Student)
Peter Melman -- Dr. Beyer (US English Teacher)
Nick Fleisher ('23) -- Mr. Day (US Math Teacher)
Justine Shulke ('23) -- Rin (11th Grade Student)
Charlotte Reiser ('24) -- Ms. Thorsen (LS Teacher)
Todd Johnson -- Mr. Cotter (Maintenance Worker)
Patricia Runcie-Rice -- Ms. Iverson (MS Learning Specialist)
Matilda Ledger ('24) -- Dr. Hammond (US History Teacher)
Larissa Dzegar -- Ms. Fiera (Cafeteria Worker)
Playwrights Note:
Though much of the play is verbatim, Sadie did take artistic liberty in altering some quotes and the context in which they are said. Additionally, while characters are based on real Packer community members, the 11 characters (excluding Sadie) are fictional, thus why real names are not used.