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[THEATER REVIEW] Winter One Acts bring a trio of entertaining theater to Huss

SPACE FRIENDS. Johnson (left) and Auberjonois (right) share a majority of the runtime in "The Little Prince."
SPACE FRIENDS. Johnson (left) and Auberjonois (right) share a majority of the runtime in “The Little Prince.”
Nabeeha Qadri
SPACE PRINCE. Johnson's performance of titular character in "The Little Prince" was one of the most memorable of the night, balancing both comedy and emotion.
The Little Prince

The night of one acts began with Eric Severson’s adaptation of “The Little Prince,” a play by Rick Cummins and John Scoullar, adapted from a short French novel written by Antonie de Saint-Exupery. Originally released in 1943, the narrative follows a stranded airplane pilot who runs into the little prince, who recounts his life story to the pilot.

In Severson’s production, The Aviator (sophomore Sunde Auberjonois) and The Little Prince (sophomore Eva Johnson) share a great dynamic, with both having performances that complement each other perfectly. Specifically, Johnson’s childlike performance effectively brought both comedic and emotional moments to life in the play. In contrast, Auberjunois’ performance is more level-headed, as the pilot works as the narrator throughout the performance.

As the show progresses, the audience is introduced to the world of the little prince, as he tells his story of falling in love with a rose (senior Maddie Pierce) on his home asteroid, and then proceeding to visit six different planets, each inhabited by one adult. The cast of adults truly put on display the quirky world of the prince, with each character being unique and fun to watch.

The set of the performance was extremely minimalistic, with a crashed plane as the centerpiece, accompanied by rocks and some of the pilot’s drawings on the sides. The minimalist production puts the acting and writing at the forefront, yet it feels slightly disappointing. The intergalactic nature of the story seemed to present opportunities for more visual storytelling that didn’t get fulfilled. Despite this, the costume design was incredibly well done; characters such as The Snake (sophomore Anneli Wilson) and The King (sophomore Ella Barlow) showcased the impressive effort put into the costumes.

As the narrative comes to a close, the emotional stakes of the story ramps up, creating a captivating climax. The performances continue to shine, with The Fox (Meili Windorski) being a welcome addition to the cast. Windorski and Johnson’s conversations reveal the story’s heart-touching morals of love and friendship.

Rating: ★★★★/5

SPACE PRINCE. Johnson’s performance of titular character in “The Little Prince” was one of the most memorable of the night, balancing both comedy and emotion. (Nabeeha Qadri)
TRAPPED. Ebert, Bahadur and Medrano (from left to right) play three people punished to eternal damnation in a single room together. Their chemistry makes "No Exit" an invigorating watch.
No Exit

“Hell is other people.” These words are the underlying philosophy behind the night’s second show, “No Exit.” Jean Paul Sartre’s iconic 1944 existentialist play, originally written and produced in French, was adapted by senior director Madeline Kim. The play follows three humans, Garcin (senior Adam Ebert), Inez (senior Grace Medrano) and Estelle (senior Aarushi Bahadur), sentenced to damnation.

Their punishment? Being stuck in a single room together for eternity.

With only three characters, all of the audience’s attention is drawn to their interactions with each other. The small cast puts heavy bearing on the shoulders of Ebert, Medrano and Bahadur, but they all deliver. There is an outstanding level of chemistry between the three actors, as they drive each other insane trying to figure out what put them all together. In an attempt to put themselves at ease, they all admit their wrongdoings on earth, but all it does is cause more frustration.

The tension that the play builds in its runtime makes it an endlessly captivating watching experience. The drapes are closer together than usual, essentially making the Huss stage smaller and creating a sense of feeling trapped in the room with the characters. The play is also one extended scene, with no set changes or characters going in and out of the narrative, further adding to the claustrophobic nature of the show.

The script itself is littered with complex themes, largely centered around questions of freedom, existence and morality. Venturing to understand everything the play is trying to say requires close reading of the original play’s dialogue and history. While this makes the play fascinating to think about, it can also make it inaccessible while watching. Ultimately, this is a minor issue, as the script’s intricacy is thought provoking, enhancing its’s quality.

Kim’s use of the source material and actors makes “No Exit” a performance that leaves the audience thinking as the curtains close.

Rating:★★★★½/5

TRAPPED. Ebert, Bahadur and Medrano (from left to right) play three people punished to eternal damnation in a single room together. Their chemistry makes “No Exit” an invigorating watch. (Nabeeha Qadri)
KILLER CATS. Goff (left) and Wall (right) present the audience one of the likely apocalyptic scenarios: cats with chainsaws.
All the Ways the World Will End But Not You

The third show of the night brought a significant tone switch from the previous two performances. Originally written by Ian McWethy and Jason Pizzarello, the comedy “All the Ways the World Will End, But Not You,” was brought to the Huss stage by senior director Eleanor Chung Putaski. The play’s premise asks a simple question: how will the world end?

At the beginning of the performance, former Google analysts Meghan Tindy (junior Murray Goff) and Abel Matters (junior Patrick Wall) bring the audience the unfortunate news that the world has three years, two days, 17 hours and 33 minutes until everything we know is gone. What ensues is a presentation of the most likely apocalyptic scenarios, ranging from alien invasion to cannibalism to killer cats.

The set features a smartboard in the middle and a screen with solid blocks of color in the background which changes depending on the scene. The focus is then left on the supporting cast, who act out all the annihilation scenarios in over-the-top comedy sketch fashion. One of the funniest moments included surviving a zombie apocalypse, which featured junior Zahra Wiedmann and ninth graders Francis Hanna, Kieran Ahearne-Kroll and Elliot Gilats as f cultist wiffle ball players. Similarly memorable was an artificial intelligence takeover, performed by Wiedmann alongside senior Raven Glaser and ninth grader Oakley Schonwald as they deal with Jackson, played by Hanna, a bloodthirsty robot whose attempt to fit in with his human friends falls flat. While some of the sketches worked well, others felt that they overstayed their welcome, making the jokes occasionally lackluster.

The standout performances of the play, though, were Goff and Wall. Their incredibly animated deliveries complemented each other perfectly, as the segments in between the world-ending scenarios, where the two bounced off each other, brought some of the biggest laughs of the whole night.

Putaski makes the most of the runtime “All the Ways the World Will End, But Not You”, with 30 minutes of nonstop comedic performance. Even if some of the jokes don’t land as they aimed to, the overall density of them made the play hard not to enjoy.

Rating: ★★★★/5

KILLER CATS. Goff (left) and Wall (right) present the audience one of the likely apocalyptic scenarios: cats with chainsaws. (Nabeeha Qadri)
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