Senior Austin Talamantes (right) acts in last year’s winter play, “The Paper Chase,” along with sophomore Blake Lincoln. This year, Talamantes will be one of five seniors playing double roles.
Although it has a cast of only nine, the high-school play “LOVE/SICK” still needs a few more actors, according to director Brian Frishman.
The show was written by John Cariani and is a collection of nine 10-minute skits with two actors in each.
“LOVE/SICK” has a scripted cast of 18, but Frishman hopes to pull it off with fewer people.
“Some students will play multiple characters.” Frishman said. “We have eight or nine, but we need more female actors.”
The play contains a thematic throughline of both love and pain, Frishman said.
It will be performed Thursday, Nov. 17, and Friday, Nov. 18.
Unlike Cariani’s “Almost Maine” (performed several years ago by the high school), this darker comedic romance shows the imperfections of relationships.
Even though a Washington Post story revealed that over a quarter of U.S. citizens are afraid of public speaking, Frishman doesn’t think that’s the reason students aren’t auditioning.
Instead, he said, it’s because of homework load and other extracurricular activities.
“Having night rehearsals eliminates some people from being able to participate,” Frishman said.
“At Country Day, since it’s so academically rigorous, some students who would want to participate can’t because they’re panicked about grades.”
As of now, not a single student in the year-round drama elective is in the play.
“(The class is) mostly people who are trying to get their elective requirements and not necessarily interested in acting,” Frishman said.
In fact, many of the students in the class agree with Frishman’s comment about homework.
Freshman Savannah Rosenzweig, who is in the class, said that she will not participate because she has too many after-school activities.
Freshman Christopher Wilson, who is also in the class, agreed.
Senior Austin Talamantes, who will be playing two roles in “LOVE/SICK,” has mixed feelings on the homework load.
“The hardest thing about being in the play is the time commitment,” he said. “The rehearsals, which occur two or more times a week, are two-and-a-half hours long, making drama very time consuming.”
But Talamantes said the time is worth it.
“During rehearsals, you spend a lot of time with people who become your friends. At the same time, it’s very interesting to see your friends act because you see them take on another personality.”
—By Jackson Margolis
