Coming this Oct. to Schreiber High School is the annual Actoberfest. This event will be held on Oct. 25 and 26 from 7:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. in the Schreiber Auditorium. Hosted annually by the Drama Club, Actoberfest features six unique student-directed short plays with student actors.
One of the plays, The Fount of Inspiration, is directed by senior and president of the Drama Club Max Siskin.
“I’ve wanted to direct Actoberfest since I was a freshman and was in a play directed by one of my friends. I directed for the first time last year and it was one of the most rewarding experiences of my junior year,” said Siskin.
The Fount of Inspiration was written by Don Zolidis, a former middle school and high school theater teacher. Zolidis’s work with children helped him connect to a younger audience through his plays and ultimately led to his massive success. Now, he has published over 125 plays that have been performed over 30,000 times in all 50 states.
This comedic play is about a girl named Megan who is struggling to work on her college essay as her annoying younger sister, April, just wants to watch TV. When April tries to rush Megan through writing her essay, she inadvertently gives her the perfect idea of what to write about.
Another play, The Scary Question, is directed by junior Aurora Mata. This play is written by Wayne S. Rawley, a director, playwright, and actor. Rawley, who has written both short and full-length plays, was a finalist for the National Ten Minute Play Contest for his short play called Controlling Interest.
The Scary Question is a comedy about a couple named Brian and Linda. In this play, Brian gets down on one knee and starts to ask a question. However, he does not ask the question Linda or anyone else would expect. The question causes Linda to get angry and results in the couple having an unusual argument.
Mime in a Box will be directed by senior and co-vice president Kat Djohan. This play was written by Stephen Bittrich, a top 30 finalist in the Project Greenlight contest, who has been writing plays since he was in middle school. Mime in a Box answers the question of whether or not a mime will ever break their character.
“Two friends vigorously test the bounds of what is real and what is imaginary with their friendly neighborhood street mime,” said Djohan.
The fourth play, La Mouche, is also written by Brittich. Directed by senior Cassidy Metzner, this play is about a customer who finds a fly in their soup at a French restaurant. Throughout the play, the waiters joke and talk with the customer who will remain unamused with the situation.
Another play will be Bad Auditions by Bad Actors, which was written by Ian McWethy and directed by senior and treasurer Sadie Poulsen. McWethy has written over 50 plays performed in over ten different countries as well as novels, short films, web series, and screenplays, including three Lifetime movies.
“This play is about a play director and her assistant trying to cast the leads for a production of Romeo and Juliet. However, such a simple casting is made harder because of the personalities of the people auditioning,” says Poulsen.
Marred Bliss, written by Samuel Cree, will be directed by senior James Kott. Cree was born in Northern Ireland and is known for his plays, sketches, and comedies about marriage, love, and family.
This dark comedy is about the reality of marriage. It follows a couple, Dink and Jane, who are about to get married when both of their exes show up and cause chaos.
“I hope everyone can come to Actoberfest because the plays this year are a lot of fun,” says Siskin.
Actoberfest is a drama club tradition and continues to give students leadership opportunities that they may not find anywhere else. Overall, it helps students become more comfortable on stage and in introducing students to peers in other grades. Actoberfest is sure to be an educational and meaningful opportunity for actors, directors, and viewers.