Three years ago, junior Kai Batovsky sat in the audience of the One-Act Festival as a freshman, “blown away” by the nuance of a short-form theater show. This month, Bortovsky returned to that same stage — not as a spectator, but as a veteran of the theater department’s highest-level drama class. The Theatre 3 Advanced Drama class held its annual One-Act festival on April 17 and 18, showcasing the department’s highest level of student-led production. The event featured 15-minute performances, entirely student-led and directed, requiring students to establish character arcs and narrative stakes within a limited timeframe. Throughout a ten-week preparation period, students were responsible for script arrangements, technical cues and rehearsal schedules.
Batovsky agrees that the advanced nature of the curriculum required students to adapt to more complex roles than in previous years.
“There’s been a lot of growing pains this year,” Batovsky said. “But I feel like it’s really paid off. All of those challenges allowed us to overcome them and become better performers.”
For those writing and directing original scripts, the challenge extended to the emotional authenticity of the work. Senior Hailey Johnston, who wrote and directed “How to Grieve Me, Julia Heart,” focused on a realistic portrayal of loss.
“My approach was to show a very real version of what grief looks like and emulate it on stage,” Johnston said. “I really wanted to show something that’s more realistic and more human.”
Because of the short format, performers had to find ways to communicate their character’s relationship dynamic as soon as they stepped on stage.
“It’s really just about making relationships clear… the audience can then be like, ‘Oh, you’re this type of person,’ or ‘This is your personality,’ based on how you’re interacting with the world around you,” Batovsky said.
Students had to get into the right mind state quickly, in order to manage the mental transition required to move from practice to execution.
“I literally am laughing and joking backstage […] It’s only about a minute before I’m about to perform that I get in character. I take a moment of silence and I think about everything,” Batovsky said.
While many are accustomed to acting, the festival required many to step up to leadership for the first time, like senior Meredith Bacher.
“I understand on a very personal level what the acting side looks like, but I’m somewhat unfamiliar with the directing side, so it was very new to me,” Bacher said.
Johnston echoed this sentiment, noting that it required a specific focus to lead her friends through heavy subject matter.
“Directing a lot of my friends was a very interesting experience. It did take a little bit to kind of lock in,” Johnston said. “I had a very clear vision for every part of the process… This is what your character is thinking. This is why they’re saying this line.”
Bacher boasted that her primary objective as a director was to foster a team-oriented atmosphere during rehearsals.
“I wanted to make it more of like a collaborative environment between the actor and director so that we could all learn together how it was going to work,” Bacher said.
Ultimately, seeing their written words translated to the stage provided a sense of accomplishment for these student writers.
“It was so amazing to get to see it all come together,” Johnston said. “Yes, you guys are doing it! I was just so proud of my actors.”
Bacher observed how line delivery often differed from her original vision, which she described as “fun to see their interpretations.” For Johnston, the highlight was seeing her cast originate her characters. Nearing the end of the year, the class views the festival as a culmination of their entire high school drama experience.
“A lot of the material that we’ve been given this year has been very difficult,” Batovsky said. “I feel like I’m speaking on behalf of everyone in the class, but I feel like it’s really challenged us all.”
