Greetings Students, Parents and Community.
Dan Gilbert and Sam Watson here, checking in to share some news and information with the community! For years, decades even, the Maranacook High School Theater program has been a source of pride, inspiration and community for our district, providing high quality student productions that leave audiences astonished, entertained and proud. Despite the massive impact COVID-19 has had on the arts and entertainment over the past 6 months, we are determined to continue on providing this opportunity for students in a safe and meaningful way.
One thing that we have decided to do in order to keep the program moving, and not waste any time we have, is swap the Musical and Play timelines. Per the Department of Education and public health restrictions, we are not allowed to sing in enclosed spaces at this time. Since a Musical is based primarily on its solo and ensemble singing, it would be impossible to put on. By tackling the annual Play in the fall, and setting the Musical for the Spring, we can insure that Theater instruction and opportunities occur.
The direction we are going this year is a little more experimental than the traditional Maranacook Plays have been, challenging students to write, edit, design, record and produce their own play. While ambitious, it would provide students with the “ultimate” creative opportunity, and also allow us to teach concepts of lighting, sound and set design, as well as videography and production. This would be a fully immersive experience for students and, by writing and designing our own play, we do not run into the issue of rights, and, assuming we would not be able to house an audience, we could freely record and make available the performance to the public.
While we will continue to adapt to the state of education and the pandemic, we will continue to keep an eye on the latest guidelines and procedures. We want to assure students and the community that we are eager to keep Theater running this year and provide this creative opportunity.
~D.S. (Dan and Sam)