Four plays. Four directors. Two performances. Seniors directed and students performed four one-act plays for the Student Directed Showcase (SDS) on Jan. 9 and 10 at the Blackford theater.

The four shows, “Almost Maine,” “Exit,” “We Live Here” and “Check Please,” directed by Caroline Howells (12), Zoe Woehrmann (12), Madi Lang-Ree (12) and Jai Ahuja (12) respectively, ranged from romance to witty humor.

Each director was chosen through an interview and application process and picked their one act play over the summer. Some directors read through many plays to find the perfect one, while others knew their play right when they saw it. Casting began in early October and rehearsals continued all the way up until January.

SDS is a Harker performing arts tradition. Performing Arts Department Chair Laura Lang-Ree remembers having the first SDS show, which consisted of seven plays and was held at the place that is now Harry’s Hofbrau.

“Somehow we got access to go inside, and we performed all around the restaurants, and we brought in rigging and lighting, and everyone came, and it was really cool,” Lang-Ree said.

However, now the SDS process has been narrowed down to three or four plays to make for a two or three hour show, according to Lang-Ree.

She plans to expand the SDS program in the future with the advent of the Event Center.

“How Mr. Larsen and I envision this in the future is that there would be a hands-on class that runs concurrently with Student Directed [Showcase] where there would be student designers working on the set and student lighting designers working on the lighting program,” Lang-Ree said. “That would just make it a whole much richer experience.”

Harker Conservatory’s next performance is the dance show this weekend.

MADI LANG-REE

For “We Live Here” director Madi Lang-Ree (12), SDS has been something she has always wanted to do after watching the shows in past years. Applying for SDS was not something she had to think about, it was just the natural thing to do.

When casting came around, Madi was happily surprised with what she saw even though some of her visions were not exactly matched.

“I struggled at first with letting go of all my previously formed conceptions and ideas, but I quickly was able to let go and see my vision come to life,” she said. “As soon as I found the right people for the parts, everything just clicked into place and it became a really rewarding and exciting experience.”

Madi explained that she had very specific ideas of what her show should look like and would push her actors to meet those visions.

“They were all really inquisitive and intelligent actors, so when I gave them a note or concept, they were able to interpret it with grace,” she said.

On opening night, Madi remembers being more nervous but more excited than she had ever been for actually acting in a show. She was confident with her cast and knew that they couldn’t have done any better.

Gallery • 3 Photos

Sharanya Balaji

Sana Aladin (10) and Akhil Arun (9) perform. The play 'We Live Here" was directed by Madi Lang-Ree.

However, as the shows closed, she felt incredibly emotional about the fact that this long and fulfilling process was coming to a close.

“I lost it and was just sitting there bawling. I went out of the theater to greet them and we stood outside for over 10 minutes crying in giant group hugs and saying how much we loved each other,” she said.  “It was indeed very cheesy and sappy.”

Madi primarily misses the cast and the fact of seeing them everyday and working with them. She never felt that she had to force the cast to bond. They all naturally got along. The only thing she had to do was challenge them to be able to get very close with each other both emotionally and physically to meet the needs of the plotline.

The cast plans on meeting a year from now, sitting around, and eating cereal like the dysfunctional family they were on stage.

ZOE WOEHRMANN

The director of “Exit,” Zoe Woehrmann (12), was first inspired to get involved with SDS by two of the SDS shows that she had participated in directed by Hannah Prutton (‘13) and Shenel Ekici (‘14). Her passion for directing continued during a summer camp where she was an assistant-director for younger kids. “It really showed me how much fun it could be,” she said.

One of the first steps for Zoe as a director was casting.

“We had been preparing for auditions for a couple days, but when person after person was auditioning, I was typing notes so quickly and trying to figure out where I could see them in my show that I got pretty frazzled,” she said.

When callbacks came around, she hoped that she would get everyone she needed since her cast was designed a little differently – requiring at least five people in each scene rather than two or three like the other directors.

However, as her cast was set and she had her first rehearsal to discuss character backgrounds, she knew that the whole process for her was going to be rewarding.

“I was so impressed with the depth of their answers, and they came up with backstory that connected their characters in ways I hadn’t even imagined,” she said.

The cast had a retreat over Winter Break where they played “Escape the Mysterious Room,” a game designed for people to try to find a way out of being trapped in a room. This game was very synonymous to the actual plot of the play.

For Zoe, one of her most enjoyable moments was simply seeing the whole show come together the day before opening night at their dress rehearsal.

“I was brought to tears because I was so relieved that everything had come together and so proud of all the work the cast put into the show,” she said.

However, as the curtain was about to open on opening night, Zoe felt slightly excited and nervous because she started to doubt some of her choices and hoped that the audience would like her work. But it did all work out.

“Saturday night was the first time I actually just sat down in the audience and watched it without taking notes- it was such a satisfying experience to see something you’ve put so much work into come together,” she said.

CAROLINE HOWELLS

Caroline Howells (12) knew that she had wanted to be a part of SDS ever since she participated in her first acting experience in freshman year during SDS. Prior to her freshman year, Howells focused on singing and dancing. SDS was the first time she discovered herself as an actor without all of that.

After finding out that she had been chosen as a director in the beginning of Spring Break of last year, the directors were required to pick their plays over the Summer Break. Howells discovered her play when a friend at a college intensive for musical theater suggested it to her. She instantly fell in love with it. The play was “Almost Maine.”

Before casting happened, Howells had to choose the scenes she wanted to perform, analyze characters and the show as a whole. She knew that casting was going to be difficult with four shows happening simultaneously, but she remembers it being a lot simpler than she thought it would be. She felt that every decision she made during that process worked out.

“Everybody who was cast was perfectly suited to their role, and sometimes you only discover that once you get to the performances,” she said.

Howells made a point to schedule rehearsal every week even if it was just to play games and bond. She even made her cast members do a trust walk with each other since her show lied on the basis of connections and trust.

JAI AHUJA

Jai Ahuja directed the comedy centered around two people going through horrible blind dates. His desire to be an SDS director lied primarily in his curiosity to experience the other side of a show.

Jai’s primary vision for his show changed constantly. He had to keep reworking each of the parts to figure out which parts were actually funny. But he was finally able to come up with exactly what he wanted.

“We got it to be what we wanted through hard work, trust, and through learning from each other,” he said.

He remembers feeling anxious before casting but was still able to derive inspiration for the process despite some of the struggles he faced. It was very difficult for him to decide which person would play each role best. “So many people could have been in various different roles and it was tough trying to figure out the best fit,” he said.

But he finally got his cast together and went straight to rehearsals. He played games with his cast to get his cast to bond. They played hide and go seek, wii games, and quizzes to help break any barriers. He feels that these games enabled them to play their roles to their fullest ability.

Gallery • 2 Photos

Sharanya Balaji

Sara Pachauri (10) and Aditya Dhar (10) perform. "Check Please" was directed by Jai Ahuja (12).

As opening night approached though, Jai had last minute anxiety about if the comedy in his show was actually translating the way he hoped. But yet his most memorable moment was also before the show when his whole cast huddled around to take some time to enjoy the last few moments of being the Check Please cast before the show.

“I miss my cast,” said Jai. “They’re funny, spontaneous and amazing people. I honestly miss all of them.”