This year’s fall theater production is going to be quite different from others that members of CHS have witnessed in the past. Instead of a singular, staff directed production, English teacher Dakota McCoy is putting on a series of student led ten minute plays. These short story type productions will allow students interested in theater and directing to express their own creative thinking while also adding something new to look forward to in Chesterton’s schedule.

The roster for casts and student directors have already been filled out, with the auditions having been held on Wednesday, October 7th.There will be five plays in total, with four being written by current students and one being written by two graduates from last year. This year’s directors and writers are George Tracy and Nathan Mullin(Class of 2020), Olivia Vogel (‘23), Rebecca Mueller (‘21), Katelynn Asbury (‘24), Abigail McCarthy (‘23), and Elijah Root (‘21). While the productions are student led and directors are given complete reign over their plays, the rehearsals and overall planning of the opening night will be looked over by the stage manager, Senior Elia Livovich.

“The differences in the ‘Ten Minute Plays’ format intrigue me. Although it is very different from the norm, the performers are already adjusting to it in such a way that is incredible to me. Adaptability and dedication couldn’t be more important for this play, and I’m proud to say that the cast this year are already exemplifying these traits. The differences to me present a challenge and new learning curve to overcome, and I am excited to work to that goal,” Livovich stated.

Creative freedom is encouraged for the ten minute plays, to help student directors and actors truly express their talent. However, there are some guidelines and rules as to the content placed within each production that are both content and Covid related.  

“Students were given free reign over their creativity. As long as it was school-appropriate and allowed the cast to be socially distant, everything else was up to the writer,” states Dakota McCoy. 

The ten minute plays are set to debut on November 13th through the 15th. Until then, the student writers, directors, actors, and stage managers will be hard at work, rehearsing and putting their shows together for public viewing. 

“Adaptability and dedication couldn’t be more important for this play, and I’m proud to say that the cast this year are already exemplifying these traits, and I couldn’t be happier to introduce the world of stage managing to my [new] assistant stage managers, Hannah Pesce and Gigi Hanner,”  Livovich finished.

So be sure to get yourself a ticket when the time comes to support our aspiring theatre artists, on November 13th (@7pm), 14th (@7pm) or 15th (@3pm), and enjoy the show.