Periodically I will indulge my enthusiasm for Southwest High School and its Performing Arts Program with these short pieces about our local students and productions. Here is one…
Top secret information…. a murdered counter-espionage agent… an innocent man forced on the run… and dry slap-stick humor.
What more could you want from two student directors and the first Black Box Show of the 2014-15 Southwest high School theater season?
When classmates Ming Montgomery and Nathaniel Larson decided they wanted to co-direct a large, fast-paced comedy in the unique black box stage at Southwest High School, Ming recalled seeing “The 39 Steps” at the Guthrie a few years ago. They found the script online and loved it – both for its humor and its particular challenge for this intimate stage setting.
Last week, they began their senior year by conducting auditions for “The 39 Steps,” which will be performed October 7-10, 7pm.
They’ve cast their fellow students with an eye toward actors who make confident choices, as as well as a talent for physical humor, and in doing so, they have veered away from the original casting decisions that directors like Alfred Hitchcock made in telling the story.
Ming’s primary experience has been in musical theater, though she notes an appreciation for all genres of theater that Southwest veteran teacher Margaret Berg has exposed her to. She acted in Southwest’s freshman/sophomore Footlights musicals, and the main stage productions of Tommy and Thoroughly Modern Millie, and she also worked tech for Hairspray, One Acts 2012, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show. This will be her first Black Box show.
Nathaniel has acted in seven productions at Southwest. He carries with him the insights of former student-director Helena Scholz-Carlson, who taught him that “if the director is serious and professional, the actors will accomplish more and feel better for it.”
Like Ming, he has a strong interest in theater, though we have plenty of other reasons to expect good things for him. For example, last year he was one of a select 18 U.S high school students chosen to participate in a yearlong study of the sustainable development practices of Malaysia and Singapore, an honor which included a three-week immersion experience in Singapore.
And way back as an 8th grader at Lake Harriet, he was one of six local students chosen to travel to D.C. for the National History Day Competition – where his examination of the role the Panama Canal Treaty had in energizing our country’s conservative movement ended up winning First Prize in the nation.
Proud of our kids and our local high school? You bet we are. Go Southwest!
– Larry LaVercombe, Linden-Hills.com
Top secret information…. a murdered counter-espionage agent… an innocent man forced on the run… and dry slap-stick humor.
What more could you want from two student directors and the first Black Box Show of the 2014-15 Southwest high School theater season?
When classmates Ming Montgomery and Nathaniel Larson decided they wanted to co-direct a large, fast-paced comedy in the unique black box stage at Southwest High School, Ming recalled seeing “The 39 Steps” at the Guthrie a few years ago. They found the script online and loved it – both for its humor and its particular challenge for this intimate stage setting.
Last week, they began their senior year by conducting auditions for “The 39 Steps,” which will be performed October 7-10, 7pm.
They’ve cast their fellow students with an eye toward actors who make confident choices, as as well as a talent for physical humor, and in doing so, they have veered away from the original casting decisions that directors like Alfred Hitchcock made in telling the story.
Ming’s primary experience has been in musical theater, though she notes an appreciation for all genres of theater that Southwest veteran teacher Margaret Berg has exposed her to. She acted in Southwest’s freshman/sophomore Footlights musicals, and the main stage productions of Tommy and Thoroughly Modern Millie, and she also worked tech for Hairspray, One Acts 2012, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show. This will be her first Black Box show.
Nathaniel has acted in seven productions at Southwest. He carries with him the insights of former student-director Helena Scholz-Carlson, who taught him that “if the director is serious and professional, the actors will accomplish more and feel better for it.”
Like Ming, he has a strong interest in theater, though we have plenty of other reasons to expect good things for him. For example, last year he was one of a select 18 U.S high school students chosen to participate in a yearlong study of the sustainable development practices of Malaysia and Singapore, an honor which included a three-week immersion experience in Singapore.
And way back as an 8th grader at Lake Harriet, he was one of six local students chosen to travel to D.C. for the National History Day Competition – where his examination of the role the Panama Canal Treaty had in energizing our country’s conservative movement ended up winning First Prize in the nation.
Proud of our kids and our local high school? You bet we are. Go Southwest!
– Larry LaVercombe, Linden-Hills.com
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