By Melanie Petrucci, Senior Community Reporter
Photo/Melanie Petrucci
Northborough – The young thespians at Algonquin Regional High School (ARHS) will be performing the Pulitzer Prize winning production, “Proof,” Thursday, Feb. 28, and Saturday, March 2, for their annual Winter Show. The students will also be hosting a Mini Theater Festival Friday, March 1, which will feature 40 minute version of “Proof” along with shows from Dennis-Yarmouth and Ayer-Shirley High Schools.
Written by playwright David Auburn, the play premiered on Broadway in October 2000, and won the Tony Award for Best Play. Central themes include genius, madness, love and trust.
“We wanted to give actors a chance to do something that was relatable, something that was a little heavier, something that gave them a challenge, and ‘Proof’ was something that fit the bill,” said the production’s director, Brian Kelly, who is also a biology teacher at the school. “It deals with real life situations, loss, uncertainty, battling things that are prevalent in high school like mental illness. Robert has schizophrenia and it’s something that his daughter has to fight with.”
“Theater is an integral part of development, being able to express yourself and it teaches empathy and creativity,” he noted.
“It’s a bare bones theater experience,” noted Maura Morrison, a member of the school’s Fine and Performing Art’s faculty.
ARHS’s production is presented on a minimalistic set in the schools’ Black Box Theater, with only four characters; Catherine, her sister Claire, their father Robert and Hal (a former student of Robert’s).
“The character that I am playing is Catherine. We follow her through the course of a couple of days and she has just lost her father [Robert] who was a mathematical genius. Her sister is coming and there’s a funeral,” said Katherine Moffa, a senior at ARHS.
“I am Catherine’s sister, Claire and I’m coming from New York to go to the funeral. Claire’s just coming to take Catherine Back to New York to be with her because she thinks that she [Catherine] is going kind of crazy…she wants to be able to help her,” explained Annalise Loizeaux.
Joe Gordon, who plays Hal, is usually behind the scenes so this is his first time being on stage. He comes from a theatrical family and is very excited to be a part of this cast.
Joe said that Hal falls for Catherine but has his own struggles and conflicts.
“Through a series of flashbacks you get to see a lot of what Robert was like when he was alive which gives you an idea of why Catherine is going through the things that she is going through,” remarked Nick Hatton, who plays Robert.
The production wouldn’t be complete without its crew which consists of Stage Manager Lauren Earley, Sarah Boush and Joe Green (who are usually on stage) so they are getting a different perspective with this show. Newcomer Stephan Linden is also excited to be a part of the team.
Shows begin at 7 p.m. on both Feb. 28 and March 2. Tickets go on sale for the general public at the Box Office each night at 6 p.m. Tickets are $5 for students and $10 for adults.