It Thickens...Introducing DLA Drama's 2018 Spring Play – "The Plot, Like Gravy, Thickens&qu
Grab your magnifying glasses and ready your funny bones because DLA’s next play presents people with a murder mystery that’s sure to delight a person’s inner detective while also serving a good helping of laughs. DLA Drama introduces – The Plot, Like Gravy, Thickens.
It is evening. The scene is set in Worthington Manor. Edward Worthington III, a tyrannical millionaire, is hosting his 50th birthday party. With the help of Walter, the playwright’s alter ego, it is learned that each of the other characters have something against the wealthy birthday boy. In the middle of party, Edward gets killed by one of the people present in the mansion. It is up to the audience and Lieutenant Jane McMillan to figure out who the murderer is.
“I wanted you [the drama kids] to get to do something fun,” said Ms. Schwartz when asked about why she chose this play for the 2018 Spring Season. “I also wanted only one set piece. I seriously considered dinner theatre but it would have been too hard in our venue.”
Without further ado, here’s the official cast of The Plot, Like Gravy, Thickens.
CAST LIST
“Walter ( as well as Edward Worthington III + Lieut. Jane McMillan )”
will be played by Sylvia Tran
“Allegra Worthington”
will be played by Brittany McDowell
“Tony Blackwell”
will be played by Colin McDowell
“Justine Worthington”
will be played by Justine Mamaradlo
“Debra Worthington”
will be played by Emilee Guin
“Beatrice Worthington”
will be played by Melody Hudson
“Roy Phillips”
will be played by Olivier Lang
“Connie Phillips”
will be played by Brianna Virabouth
“Peggy Sue Brumley”
will be played by Bethany Taylor
“Lawrence Tate”
will be played by Bailey Rishel
“Hollister”
will be played by Steve Ruby
“Mrs. Vickers”
will be played by Libby Guin
“Edith”
will be played by Ruby Clasen
“Ina”
will be played by Tony Aguayo
People are familiar with beloved teachers, Ms. Schwartz and Ms. Lieu, who have directed all of DLA Drama’s previous plays and musicals. Now there is a new member on board who is excited to help out in this production: Ms. Creen. As Ms. Stillman’s student teacher, she provided some insight on how she got involved with the play.
“I am Ms. Stillman's student teacher this semester, and I expressed to her that I wanted to get involved with something on campus to get as full of an experience as possible. She suggested that Ms. Schwartz would probably appreciate an extra hand with the drama production, and I have a huge interest in theater arts, so I jumped at the opportunity to be involved with this production.”
Want to hear more from drama’s newest director? Here’s an in depth interview with Ms. Creen.
When they received news of the final cast list, many of the drama kids were excited to find out who they would be playing. Some were able to elaborate on how they felt once they discovered who they were cast as.
Brittany McDowell says, “I was honestly a little shocked that I got cast as Allegra, seeing as it is not the type of character I usually get. I am super excited to play her though and get experience with different types of characters. I think that it is going to be a really fun role and I’m excited to build her character. After the first read through, I really hate Allegra because she is so obnoxious and mean to everyone, but I also love her because she is so sassy and not afraid to speak her mind.”
“I felt really excited and happy when I read the cast list for the first time,” states Brianna, who plays Connie Phillips. “She was the character I felt like I could most relate to, as our personalities are really similar. After the first read through, I got a real feel for Connie and how she acts towards other characters, how she does things. I felt even more confident to play this part.”
Steve Ruby, who plays Hollister, states, “I am very excited to play this character mostly because I have never had a role where I need to be formal and professional. It’s a challenge especially for me. My feelings towards Hollister are that he is not very emotional being that he doesn’t show much emotion but does care about the staff and Beatrice.”
As seen in the above cast list, Sylvia Tran is a triple threat considering she’ll be playing not one, but three characters in this year’s spring play.
“I enjoy playing all three characters and like playing with the diversity of personalities,” says Sylvia. “I felt like it would really interesting to play all of the characters and portray them. I was very concerned about the amount of lines that I had, but I think I can do it and it’ll be really fun.”
With every production that the DLA Drama kids do, there are always things to be excited about. What was not yet mentioned was the fact that The Plot, Like Gravy, Thickens will involve much improv and a lot of audience interaction, including a segment where audience members will have the opportunity to interrogate onstage characters to try and figure out who the murderer is. It’s no surprise that the cast members are most excited about this.
Bethany Taylor, who plays Peggy Sue, says, “I am most excited about the audience interrogations. It will be a new challenge for us to tackle, but I think we will excel at it. Other than that, I think this is a great play to end my high school theatre career with.”
“I am super excited for the audience interrogation that takes place in the second act,” states Brittany. “It’s going to require a lot of character building to be able to improv on the spot, but that is one of my favorite things to do in theatre. It adds an element to the show that you normally don’t see that often, so I think that’s super cool and I think the audience will have a lot of fun with it, too.”
There are people looking forward to this, and then there’s Brianna.
Brianna says, “Okay, I’m going to be real here. I’m excited for having food on stage, GETTING TO EAT FOOD ON STAGE. I’m also excited to play a part that is almost an exact copy of me (besides smarts and all, personally I’m not that much of an airhead). I really get to channel a new-ish version of me through Connie, I’m so so excited.”
[ NOTE: It is not yet confirmed whether the food that will be “eaten” on stage will be real or mere props. ]
And there’s also what Ms. Schwartz is most excited for.
“The set not moving? No, no,” said Ms. Schwartz. “I just like spending time with the scholars and seeing what they do with the material.”
[ ANOTHER NOTE: Anyone who’s been in theatre understands this struggle. ANYONE. ]
As the spring production rolls around the school year slowly comes to close, it is a very bittersweet time for the senior drama members that are participating in their very last show at Del Lago Academy. Some of them were able to express their feelings on this matter.
Steve says, “This is going to be my last play in Drama so it’s very exciting while also nerve racking. But I am very excited to see how this play turns about because it feels like it’s going to be spectacular.”
Bethany states, “While I am sad to be leaving soon, I know that Drama could not be left in more capable hands. I am excited to see how this program I helped build grows in the next few years. Drama will stand on its own two feet without me, and that means I did my job well.”
“I am obviously extremely sad that this is going to be my last show with DLA,” says Brittany, “but it’s kind of bittersweet because while I won’t be in any more shows after this, I have watched the younger kids grow so much and really come out of their shells. I am so excited to see what they do in the future because there is so much talent in our crazy, dysfunctional drama family. I know that anybody who comes to see this show is going to love it, so if you are reading this, come to our show in April!”
And now, a final message from Brianna Virabouth:
“Make sure to come and join us! We’re working really hard and we’d highly appreciate it if you could take the time to watch The Plot, Like Gravy, Thickens!”