“DoomGirl,” written by Emma Johnson-Rivard (‘10) and directed by Eric Severson and assistant director Akie Kutsunai, aims to demonstrate how difficult art can be to explain. It does so by alternating between scenes from a fictional RPG and a conversation between video game designer Jesse Riley (Sunde Auberjonois) and a video game editor (Grace Medrano). The RPG scenes feature the DoomGirl herself (Bri Rucker), a Cynic (Anneli Wilson), and an Optimist (Maddie Pierce) who antagonize and encourage the protagonist respectively, and a horde of faceless Shadows (Beatrix Rhone, Ella Barlow, Eva Johnson, Meili Windorski) who the DoomGirl seemingly must defeat.

The set was well-made and creatively designed, with the barren desert landscape of the RPG bleeding into the mundane editor’s office. A particularly fun set piece was the water cooler covered in red rocks and dusted with sand. The lighting was also fitting and innovative — whenever DoomGirl shot a Shadow, the stage blacked out, cleverly avoiding the moment of impact, but also adding a “did-she-didn’t-she” aspect, which meshed nicely with the air of mystery surrounding the whole production. The sound design played well with the lighting, crafting an immersive sound- and colorscape.

Largely, the actors brought an appropriate amount of emotion to their roles. Special props go out to Rucker, who made the nonspeaking DoomGirl feel like a fully-realized character through expressive body language.

The play’s story intended to make the audience confused by posing a number of unanswered questions, like who the DoomGirl really was, if any of the characters were telling the truth, and if the Shadows were anything more than anonymous enemies. However, it never convinces us that the creator of the game knows what the answers are, either, which leads to a feeling of aimlessness. It seems like she’s just as confused as the audience, with only the RPG characters acting with any kind of certainty. Although the story is supposed to be difficult to explain, the fact that it’s also difficult to understand makes the point fall flat and the runtime feel overlong. Truly excellent art should be able to make the audience feel something that helps them understand it, even if it’s difficult to articulate why it works.

Despite its narrative stumbles, DoomGirl features well-picked set pieces, costumes, lights, sounds, and actors that brought a richly-imagined world to life.

Rating: ★★★ of 5 stars

“Still Here” is the first one-act musical ever performed at SPA, written entirely by director Ellie Putaski. The story centers around Evelyn Park (Violet Pitcher), whose return to her hometown summons her childhood friend Charlie (Frances Matthews) out of nowhere — but no one but Evelyn can see or hear him, and his last 10 years of memories are a blank. The two embark on a journey to help people remember Charlie, and in the process, help Evelyn process her grief around her brother’s disappearance and her distress about the impermanence of memory.

The show was sweet and charming and, even when the mood darkened, Putaski’s songs fit the narrative tone well throughout. The set was innovative, featuring a functioning swingset (which was drilled into the stage before the show) and string lights lit up throughout.

The two leads played their comic lines well, and they had a pleasant chemistry that made their friendship seem authentic. In particular, Charlie’s frantic hand-waving to try and get strangers’ attention garnered well-earned laughs.

The story moved at an engaging clip, keeping the audience invested in Evelyn and Charlie’s journey. It stalled a little during what was meant to be the emotional climax — the leads’ back-and-forth became somewhat repetitive, losing some of its poignancy — but for the most part, Still Here was a truly delightful show with plenty of warmth to go around.

Rating: ★★★★ of 5 stars

“The Frogs,” Aristophanes’s classic Greek comedy, received a modern tune-up from director Oliver Zhu. The result is a zany mash-up of modern memes and ancient humor, and it was sometimes difficult to tell which was which. The play tells the story of Dionysus (Adam Ebert) attempting to bring his favorite playwright back from the dead, along with the help of his servant Xanthias (Murray Goff). Along the way, identities are mistaken, flyswatters are engaged, and rap verses are slung in a no-holds-barred battle.

A bare-bones set, consisting of only two doors, allowed the actors to fill the space with their exaggerated personalities. Ebert especially took advantage of this, acting with grand sweeping movements that helped further the physical humor. There were also creative props, such as a Margaret Thatcher big head sign, that fit the show’s irreverent tone.

However, although “The Frogs” may be a classic in the theatrical canon, its plot is not well known among the high school audience it was performed for. This, along with a few story beats that require previous knowledge of ancient Greek culture and mythology, as well as the lack of mics on actors, made for a confusing watching experience at times. But even during an unclear part, it was still possible to laugh along with the antics and get swept up in the show’s general energy.

Zhu’s adaptation of “The Frogs” was fun, high-energy, and unapologetically wacky, clearly made with a tome of mythology in one hand and a whoopee cushion in the other.

Rating: ★★★★ of 5 stars

See photojournalist Sofia Rivera’s full gallery of images at Ibid on Flickr.