Organizers for the 2019 fall play at Miami Trace High School recently announced that “The Mousetrap” by Agatha Christie will be the production next weekend.
According to director Andrea Johnson, the play is a classical murder mystery “whodunit” set in the 1950s and has a twist ending with the reveal of the murderer.
The three performances are Friday, Nov. 22 at 7 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 23 at 5 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 24 at 2 p.m. in the Quali-Tee Design Performing Arts Center at the high school. Tickets are $5 each and they will be on sale at the door.
“When we first started looking at scripts for this year, we knew we wanted to perform a mystery,” Johnson said. “‘The Mousetrap’ is one of the longest-running plays ever and after we read the script we loved all of the characters and the twist ending. Our cast and crew have been hard at work since September, and we are so thankful for the countless hours they put into preparing for our show.”
“We have eight cast members and 11 crew members, including four seniors. For three of the seniors, Hunter Houser, Sidney Howard and Victoria Waits, this will be their fourth fall play performance, and we also have Kate Leach who is joining the fall play for the first time as a stage crew member.”
This is the first fall play in the new high school. Johnson said the cast and crew are excited to showcase their talent in a new “fantastic” auditorium and that she truly believes the arts are a vital part of education. She is thankful to have the ability to work with these students to bring the dramatic arts to the community.
“I’ve had a lot of fun working with the students this year, and I hope that they’ve also enjoyed themselves and made some new friends and lasting memories along the way,” Johnson said. “We would also like to thank their parents for allowing their kids to participate this year. It’s been a lot of long nights preparing costumes, providing food and giving rides to and from rehearsal. We appreciate the commitment they’ve made.”
“We’ve really enjoyed being in this new space. It’s been great having our own lighting and sound equipment because previously we had to rent most of our equipment. We also have a lot more space backstage than we’ve ever had before for building, painting and storing props and costumes. For the first time, we also have designated dressing rooms for the cast members. We can’t wait to see everyone at our shows, and we’re excited to be able to showcase our talented dramatic arts students at Miami Trace.”
Director Arthur Johnson also said that it has been a great year. He thanked the community for the new school and the opportunity to perform on “this lovely stage.” To him, the community has given the directors the ability to focus more and provide a better environment to nurture the talents of the students.
Additionally, Johnson said the set is the best he has worked on at Miami Trace and the time spent developing talent instead of overcoming obstacles at the old building has been a blessing.
“The cast and crew have dedicated themselves to putting on the best show possible and I can’t thank them enough,” Johnson said. “Several of our seniors have been with us every year and will be missed, thank you. Without the interest of the students and the involvement of the community these shows would not happen. Thank you for everything and please come see the show.”
The directors weren’t the only people to speak about the play as several members of the cast decided to share their experiences and hopes. Hunter Houser, playing Detective Sergeant Trotter, said he expects it’ll be a great time for the audience just as it’s been for the cast and crew. He said they have had fun and really hopes the audience does too.
Aaron Hostetler, playing Christopher Wren, said the fall play has been one of the greatest experiences he has had this year, and the opportunity to get to know everyone involved in this year’s production has been such a tremendous privilege.
MEMBERS OF THE CAST AND CREW:
Cast (in order of appearance):
Mollie Ralston – Peyton Black; Giles Ralston – Sam Braden; Christopher Wren – Aaron Hostetler; Mrs. Boyle – Sidney Howard; Major Metcalf – Nathan Cordial; Miss Casewell – Victoria Waits; Mr. Paravicini – Brian Everhart and Detective Sergeant Trotter – Hunter Houser.
Stage Crew:
Vic Miller, Jillian Anthony, Jaron Akkermann, Kaiden Howard, Bailey Fannin, Alayna Mader, Kate Leach, Xzavier Palfrey, Jillian Grace, MacKenzie Long, Ciara Frazier and Cailin Johnson (Andrea and Arthur’s fourth grade daughter, who is an honorary stage crew member).
This article was provided by Miami Trace High School Fall Play Director Andrea Johnson. For more information contact the Miami Trace High School at (740) 333-4700.
