Through practice, the high school’s actors are preparing for the fall plays, which will be performed November 13-15.
This year, Souderton is performing “As You Like It” by William Shakespeare and “Hamlet: A World Gone Mad” by Souderton alumnus Katie Stoneback.
The main plot for “Hamlet: A World Gone Mad” follows Desi, a character trying to alter the course of “Hamlet” to ensure everyone’s survival.
According to playwright Katie Stoneback, she wanted to create a new version of the Shakespearean play.
“I was going to see if I could make it so that not everybody died,” Stoneback said.
According to Stoneback, she got to work writing her new play when she heard fall play director Lori Maxwell had the idea to do a Shakespeare play.
“Mrs. Maxwell said she wanted to do a Shakespeare theme this year,” Stoneback said. “So I said, ‘Okay, I’ll pick a Shakespeare show to change,’ and I picked “Hamlet.”
Additionally, Stoneback has always been interested in stories where characters interact with people from the real world.
“I’ve always liked stories where people from our normal world interact with characters from a different world, for example ‘The Truman Show,’” Stoneback said.
According to Stoneback, the play that she has written “is a comedic fantasy,” based on the tragedy of “Hamlet.”
Maxwell said it was decided from the beginning that they would do a Shakespeare play this year.
“I thought it would be good to do something else that’s a Shakespeare play,” Maxwell said.
Additionally, Maxwell was having difficulty deciding which Shakespearean play to pick.
“I wanted to do a comedy and it was between ‘As You Like It’ and ‘Much Ado about Nothing,’” Maxwell said.
Maxwell believes not much detail had to be cut out of “As You Like It” because “the essence of the play is still there.”
Eventually, Maxwell landed on the play “As You Like It,” which is a comedy and a love story.
Both “As You Like It” and “Hamlet” had to be shortened to fit the one-act structure.
One of the things took place last year and will also happen this year is having students display their talents in between the two plays.
“The thing that we like doing with the fall play is to have students display their artistry, whether they’re singing or displaying things that they’ve made,” Maxwell said.
When it was time for casting, anyone interested in participating as an actor could audition for a part that suited their interests.
According to senior Gabe Simrak, the key to a good audition is to stay calm, be yourself, and to not “get caught up in the little things.”