A Belated Curtains Call NEWS: A Day Late, The Curtain Rose on Curtains
The father of a St. Paul’s student recently asked him for five numbers to play for the Powerball and one for the quick pick. This student, as a part of the joint upper school production of Curtains, gave his father the five dates of their performances and the number 12 for the quick pick.
Twelve, because 12 students, out of a cast of about 30, were out sick the day before opening. This 12 does not include the missing crew members or the cast members who were there but holding on by a thread health-wise. The week of opening night, a mysterious illness plagued the cast. Someone was missing from every rehearsal, but it was not until the all-important tech week that multiple cast members were missing at once. (Tech week includes the first rehearsals where the cast, crew, and musicians run the show fully before their opening.)
Since many actors were out on opening night, the show had to be canceled, an excruciating decision for theatre director Mrs. Christina Kemmerer. For the cast, though it was discouraging, the decision was not surprising, as there had been whispers of cancellation since that morning when the choreographer neglected to mention the opening date for ticket purchasers.
More heartbreaking was that the cast received this information ten minutes before performing a preview for the lower school. One of three that day, previews are used to get the St. Paul’s community excited for the joint upper school production. The green room was never in such a somber mood as it was that day. Only the dabbing of makeup and the clanging of hangers on the metal racks interrupted the silence.
A few members of the cast offered their perspective on the decision. “Putting on the lower school performance was difficult knowing that afterward, we all…had to go home instead of doing the performance we all had looked forward to for months,” said McKenzie Hughes ’24. Though dispirited, the remaining cast “went on stage cherishing that last performance of the day,” said McKenzie Hughes ‘24.
The cast was instructed to rest for their new opening night, on Saturday. They were forbidden to go to that night’s football game against St. Paul’s biggest rival, Boys’ Latin, a decision the cast begrudgingly accepted.
During the rehearsal before their original opening night, four understudies filled in for major roles. Lauren Dockman ‘24 understudied two roles that night, as well as fulfilled the tasks she was assigned as an ensemble member.
“It was stressful to wake up each morning not knowing if I would be playing one or three roles in the show that night,” she said. “My overstudies left incredibly high heels to fill so close to the show…but the entire cast was beyond supportive helping each other do our best to keep Curtains going.” The intense support was a common theme among the cast.
“The entire cast and crew were very supportive of one another. During the week, more than any other, we gave our all because the show was nearing its end,” said ensemble member Henry Horst ’24. From those who were fighting through sickness and trying to heal to the talented understudies who covered for them, one thing that can be said is that every cast member gave the show everything they had.
But it is not just cast members who put in immense effort for this production. The show would not exist if not for the hard work of the tech crew. The crew, who also had to bear the load of tech week with the cast and battled through whatever illness was going around, were just as devastated about the cancellation of opening night. At that point, the next day’s show was still up in the air. Maddy Reno ’24, the show’s audio engineer, says, “I was sad that we would not get the normal opening night that we all worked so hard for. I understood why [Mrs. Kemmerer] canceled, but still felt disappointed. Many were worried the show wouldn’t open that week at all.”
At 5 pm on Saturday, the cast and crew trickled into the theater to prepare for their new opening night. Most of the twelve cast members who’d been sick were back in action. Finally, the company had their belated opening night. Even though the tradition of going to Nautilus Diner after opening night was interrupted this year, opening night was a success, thanks to the diligent and adaptable theater community. “In the end, we were lucky to have the majority of our cast back onstage to experience the opening night we had all worked so hard for,” said Lauren Dockman.