Cass High School’s theater program has put on many thrilling shows throughout the years, and the program’s director, Ms. McGill works incredibly hard to put these shows on. This is why, occasionally (twice a semester) she steps down and lets a fortunate senior student take her place. The most recent one of these student-led shows took place on December 11th and was directed by Amaryllis Trim. Titled “Too Many Detectives at the Murder Mansion,” the show starred students such as Jackson Armona, Brandy Jordan, Violet Trim and Blayke Gardiner. The story opens with a bunch of fans visiting an infamous museum: The Murder Mansion. The owner of the museum, Madam Doyle (played by Blayke Gardiner) introduces the fans to a slew of infamous detectives, such as Sherlock Holmes (played by Lorenzo Cotton), Batman (played by Reason Levett), and even Scooby Doo’s Mystery Crew! However, after Ms. Doyle is mysteriously murdered, these detectives are found to be suspects by local crime solvers Kane and Christie (played by Jackson Armona and Violet Trim respectively). It’s up to them to solve the case and not be led astray by ‘Too Many Detectives.’ The show is full of twists and turns and was a hilarious showcase of Amaryllis Trim’s direction and creativity. According to cast member Aiden Price, “[Trim]’s leadership skills kept the whole thing together. Without her, everything would’ve fallen apart.”
The show was put together entirely during school hours, aside from the performance itself. Students in Ms. McGill’s fourth-period Advanced Drama class were all involved in making it possible. Student-directed shows have been a part of Cass’ theater program for years, and they help students become more versed in the skills needed for everyday life, even off the stage.
Commenting on this, Ms. McGill said, “I think that directing is a super important skill for students to get to try, especially those who are really invested in what we do here because it gives them the opportunity to take everything they’ve learned, from acting to technical things, and put it all together and step into that leadership position. In most other courses, you don’t get to have that.” Not only does being a director help enhance skills in theater-related activities, it can help in a student’s life after high school. “Just being in theater, there are a lot of skills that you learn that can transfer to any career path that you go into…It’s a lot of these leadership skills, these collaboration skills that you need as an adult in any field that you’re getting in a safe space because these kids [genuinely] want to be here and they want to be [involved].” Trim agrees with Ms. McGill, and adds to her statements saying, “It teaches us how to manage people, and also leadership skills. It also helped me specifically learn not to care about what people said, stuff like that.”
Aside from being beneficial, there is a shift in dynamic that happens when a student takes Ms. McGill’s place. Jordan Crock, one of the stage managers for the show, said, “When Ms. McGill is directing, she is very straightforward [and] direct, and she can be intimidating to some people, specifically new people. And [Trim] is not that. We had several conversations [about] her being worried she was being mean -she wasn’t, by the way…she didn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings or anything like that, which I admire in her because she always wants to be nice to people, but also..sometimes people need to be yelled at.” Trim also comments on this dynamic, saying, “Before we started rehearsals, I put my foot down. I was like, we’re doing it my way, and if [you don’t like it,] too bad…The dynamic was fine after a while because [everyone] just had to get used to it.”
Even with this shift, ‘Too Many Detectives In the Murder Mansion’ was still a huge success, and enjoyable for the cast and audience. Robbi Valdez-Porter (who played Shaggy) fondly recalled the first read-through of the script. “[That was] my favorite part of this show…it was crazy because there are a lot of character voices and watching everyone try and do their character voice for the first time was hilarious.”
Not only did the cast have a good time performing, but the audience was also happy to be there. Student Elaina Heinzer, when asked what her favorite part of the show was, excitedly said “I thought it was super great, super funny! [I loved] Batman!” An Alumni of Cass’ theater program, Lin Piepmeir also commented on how amazing the show was. “I thought the projection was really good, I was all the way in the back and I could hear perfectly!”
All in all, the show was a positive experience for everyone involved. “I genuinely don’t know how this show could have gone better! Everything was great, including all the actors!” Trim happily exclaimed after the fact. Everyone involved in this show should be very proud of the work they did, and for the work to come. Next semester, with students Xavier Rector and Brandy Jordan, set to direct their own shows, it is sure to be another great year for Cass’ theater. Break a leg, Colonels!
