On Saturday, October 19th, Drama Club put on their first ever Halloween performance: a walk-through Haunted School! Guests walked through the building in small groups, led by spooky "guides", taking them from each haunting scene to the next. I was lucky enough to not only be reporting on the performance, but I was also a bit involved and got a behind-the-scenes experience! I helped a bit with sets and spent a good chunk of time Saturday morning doing hair & makeup for the performers. I'm looking forward to next year's performance, already!

Behind the Scenes:

There were a lot of hands on deck Saturday morning! The girls' locker room was packed with parents, alumni, staff, and students; all working hard to get the performers ready for the spotlight (or in this case, spooky Halloween lighting). Although there was a lot going on, everyone seemed to be in great spirits and had good attitudes. It was so nice to see how our small community comes together to volunteer their talents! A special shout-out to 6th grader Brooklyn Cozat and her special effects makeup skills! She helped make several students look extra creepy and waited until the last minute to start her own makeup. Thanks also to Drama students Athena Brown, Josie Balliet, Enaria Czarnecki, Katelin Wilson, and Mayela Cordova who also spent tons of time getting others in their hair and makeup before starting on their own. We appreciate you!

The Show!

THE SPOOKY GUIDES

Here are two of our several spooky guides that led groups from room to room.

BEETLEJUICE

In this first scene of the Haunted School, students recreated the "waiting room" from the Halloween film Beetlejuice.

The secretaries wait to greet guests and ask them when and how they died.

Beetlejuice (Josie Balliet) hides between the vending machines, waiting for the cue to pop out and startle the guests.

Beetlejuice enjoys gruffly harrassing the guests, telling bad jokes, loudly singing, and making everyone cringe.

SLEEPY HOLLOW

Next, guests experienced a trio of kids sharing a campfire story about Sleepy Hollow. Little did they know that a fright was awaiting them . . .

CORALINE

In Coraline, Coraline begins to realize that her other mother and other father may not be as wonderful as she first assumed as the cracks in their relationship begin to form.

SWEENEY TODD

The next scene begins with a jaunty jig, then leads into a lovely feast of the most delicious pies the dancers had ever had. Sweeney and Mrs. Lovett take the opportunity to show one of them the kitchen . . . a trip from which the guest doesn't return alive.

SIRENS

The sirens engaged their guests with an ethereal song, and then a question for them to answer. If they answered correctly, they could move on to the next scene. If not . . . a more gruesome fate awaited them.

ZOMBIE WEDDING

Next, guests got to witness a zombie wedding - complete with constant ambient grunts and groans from the zombie audience. In celebration of the bride and groom, the guests danced to the traditional zombie wedding song - Thriller.

HOCUS POCUS

Everyone's favorite trio of evil sisters was the last big performance of the night, spellbinding their captive audience with I Put a Spell On You. If it weren't for their extreme hunger for the life force of children, they'd probably be selling out stadiums!

THANK YOU!

The Drama Club students, Mrs. Zylman, and Mrs. Tallman all put in SO MUCH time and effort preparing this performance, and put in several hours of performances on Saturday. Thank you all for your hard work and dedication! You all have such an amazing skill - thank you for taking the time to share it with the community!

The Drama Club wants to thank the following staff, students, and community members for their help in putting on the show in one way or another:

Caitlyn Place, Natasha Yancer, The Mogg Family, M&M Feed Store, Mr. Lattimer, Mrs. Lattimer, Ms. Shelby, Mrs. Miller, Mr. Klopf, Ms. Dankert, Mrs. Shumaker, Mrs. Staley, Mr. & Mrs. Kalitta, James Schaefer, Sara Staley, Ms. Klykken, Mr. McCormack, Mr. Burkhart, Ms. Lea, Jamie & Randy Zylman, Kyle Lamb, Pam Dashner, Marilyn Leonard

Can't wait for next year? Keep up with all the Drama Club's shenanigans and check out their webpage here: https://www.colemanschools.net/page/drama

See you next time!

Natalie