You may be wondering why the auditorium stage is filled with vintage microphones and signs that read “audience” and “on air” in big block letters. Next week, this radio studio will come to life with actors, lighting, and music when the annual Upper School fall play opens. This year’s production will be especially sensational, as the show will be directed by the new Upper School performing arts teacher John Hildreth. 

The fall play was announced this summer via email as “The Laramie Project,” a show based on a true story of the murder of a gay college student for his sexual identity in Laramie, Wyoming. The Upper School theater department held auditions after school on the first two days of classes open to all upper schoolers, yet only a small group of students auditioned, eight to be precise. Upon recognizing that there were not enough students to fill the roles in the previously announced show, the theater department had to take a step back and look into other options. 

“I took the weekend after auditions and brainstormed,” Hildreth said. “I contacted a lot of my professional friends for a play with a small cast.” 

Hildreth ultimately decided that “The Water Engine” was the production that fit the group of kids that were interested. Besides working well in terms of numbers, Hildreth also had a personal connection to the show.

“When I had just graduated from high school, I was in a production of this show in my hometown’s community theater,” Hildreth said. “I have fond memories of this production. I guess that weighed heavily on this decision.”

“The Water Engine” is about an amateur inventor named Charles Lang, played by junior Will Ehrlich, who develops the idea of utilizing distilled water as electricity to power an engine. 

“It is easy for me to relate to my character,” Ehrlich said. “Charles is a nerd and I am a nerd, so I feel like that goes hand in hand.”

In the process of patenting his idea, Lang and his sister Rita, played by senior Isabella Gomez-Barrientos, are betrayed by the lawyers they employed. Instead of achieving success for his original idea, his idea is stolen, and he is taken advantage of. 

“Rita is visually impared, which is a type of character I have never had to play before,” Gomez-Barrientos said, “I have really had to dig into what being blind could feel like and how it causes you to think about the world around you.” 

Leading up to the big production, The Parker Theater Department has been actively posting rehearsal clips and photos of the cast on its Instagram page (@fwparker_theaterdept) and public story. In the short previews of the production, the actors often appear to be standing in front of microphones and reciting monologues. This format was a popular stylistic choice in the time period that it was published.  

“‘The Water Engine’ is a radio play, so there is a story within a story,” Hildreth said. 

There are a total of eight cast members in the production who have been rehearsing under the direction of Hildreth since the second week of school.

“I love Mr. Hildreth,” said Ehrlich. “He is a very interesting teacher with an amazing sense of humor, but most importantly, he knows the show.” 

“Mr. Hildreth is awesome,” Gomez-Barrientos said. “I value that he is professional as a director and teacher. Also, he is super funny!”

The cast recently completed a week of technical rehearsals, which is the first time in the process where the cast and crew are able to run the play with special lighting cues, props, and sound elements. Additionally, Parker’s Upper School stagecraft class has worked diligently to design the set for “The Water Engine.”  

“I hope it is open enough so everyone can take their own message from the story,” Hidreth said. “To me, it is a caution to creative people and those who are creative and trying to change things for the better that not everyone is always on your side.”

Other actors in the show have taken their own lessons away from the story and the characters they are portraying.

“In this production, I have learned to channel my energy through the microphone rather than through my body,” Gomez-Barrientos said.

“I’ve learned that the only opinion that matters is your own,” Ehrlich said. “Instead of searching for validation from others, it is important to trust yourself.”

The cast of “The Water Engine” will have an invited dress rehearsal at 5:00pm on Wednesday, October 16. There will be three official shows in the auditorium on October 17 at 7pm, October 18 at 7pm, and October 19 at 3pm. 

“We have all worked really hard on diving into our characters,” Ehrich said. “I think we should all be very proud of the work we have created. You should come see the show!”