“I am loving directing,” said senior Aislyn Fair, taking time for an interview at the end of a rehearsal of “Lost and Soon Forgotten,” Bromfield’s entry into this year’s High School Drama Festival, sponsored by the Massachusetts Educational Theater Guild.
With the first round of the competition scheduled for Feb. 28, time is running short. Despite some cast members still using scripts, a couple of botched entrances, and a wardrobe malfunction, Fair was pleased with the first run-through with costumes on Feb. 5.
In addition to directing “Lost and Soon Forgotten,” Fair is also its author, in collaboration with some classmates. Fair said that last year Bromfield did not participate in the drama festival, explaining that George Kendall, English and drama teacher, believes theater is not meant to be competitive. In a later email Kendall clarified his position, saying he “feels that the spirit and ideals of the festival are better served if the play is student written and student directed.” In September, students learned that the deadline for plays to be considered for entry into the festival would be in early December.
A script in three months
Fair said she scrambled to get a script together in three months’ time. The process was collaborative, with Fair getting peer feedback in an acting class taught by Kendall. She credits classmate Belle Flint with some of the major additions to the original draft. Fair admits she found the writing stressful. But she loves directing and the opportunity to work with people she has acted with in the past. Kendall says he is “director emeritus,” present at rehearsals to “help guide directorial choices as needed.”
The script has changed even further as the actors have brought it to life, Fair said. At a recent rehearsal, Fair made an on-the-spot change, cutting a couple of sentences to make a “better flow of dialogue.” She said she has encouraged the cast to suggest changes if something feels “off” to them. “I trust my cast to know their characters,” said Fair.
The idea for the play came in part from conversations Fair had with her sisters. She said they often talk about how fast the world is changing and how older people recall things that no longer exist today or have been greatly changed. What would it be like if that past were taken away? Fair’s dystopia, “Lost and Soon Forgotten,” is her answer to that question.
Zenith versus Myrmidons
Set around the year 3000, the world of the play comprises two vastly different classes of society: the Zenith, who have all the power, and the Myrmidons, lowly creatures wholly dependent on their superiors. They are regularly made to recite the watchwords of the Zenith, such as “Individuality destroys unity” and “Emotions are illusions.”
As the play unfolds, one of the Myrmidons, Tynan, finds writing from the past, and it makes him begin to question the values the Zenith have imposed. He feels a deep connection to some of these “new” concepts: loving, sharing, writing, people caring about one another.
While the play has themes in common with many dystopian works—Orwell’s “1984” and Lowry’s “The Giver” come to mind—Fair has given these ideas a fresh voice. Part of the work’s success is its creative staging that enforces the play’s themes. The set, designed and built by students in the introductory and advanced stage design and technology classes, elevates the Zenith, so that we actually see and feel their superiority. The Myrmidons, by contrast, move on all fours as befits their subservient position. They also speak in chorus, emphasizing their lack of individuality.
At the core of the drama is the interaction between Diana, a teenager from the “past,” and the Myrmidon Tynan, who slowly discovers the values of Diana’s world and is forever changed. Tynan is played by Joey D’Amore, who does an excellent job of portraying a curious mind gradually realizing a world other than the one it has always known. D’Amore says he enjoys playing Tynan because the character is willing to stand up for his beliefs.
Caroline Hentz, convincing as Diana, finds the role easy to play because ”she’s a lot like me.” Hentz sees Diana as caring and compassionate, with a knowledge of the world beyond her years.
At the end of the rehearsal, Fair called the cast together for notes. She congratulated them, saying she was very proud of the job they had done. After giving a couple of individual pointers and an ultimatum to everyone to be “off book” by Monday, she turned serious. She told the cast that she wants them to feel that the play is about a lot more than winning; more important is the sense of community that they gain as they work together. She wants them all to care deeply about the play and about one another.
The cast responded positively. Their nods and friendly comments suggested that the ideas of “Lost and Soon Forgotten” have had a strong personal impact on them.
Bromfield will hold an open dress rehearsal in Cronin Auditorium at 6 p.m. on Feb. 24 and will perform at Westford Academy on Feb. 28 at 4:30 p.m. in the first round of competition.
From left: Emma Sullivan, Joey D’Amore, and Kevin Seery rehearse a scene from “Lost and Soon Forgotten.” (Photo by Lisa Aciukewicz)
