It’s 6:56p.m. on Thursday night. The curtains are drawn and the cast just finished their focus game. As they’re taking their places on stage, the crowd is roaring with anticipation. Now, at 6:59, the actors are buzzing with nervous excitement. The crowd begins to hush, the lights dim, music quietly hums in the background, and the curtains rise.
She Kills Monsters is a play that the cast describes as anything but ordinary. Opening night was 7p.m. Thursday, November 13 and the other show was 7p.m. Friday, November 14 in the GHS Theater. Kayley Small, who played Gabbi/Evil Gabbi, summarized the play as “Agnes, a high school varsity cheerleader, decides to play one of her late sister, Tilly’s, Dungeon & Dragons campaign to learn more about her. Throughout the game Agnes meets new people, solves a quest, and of course, fights monsters.” Music surrounded each scene.
With this being a new style of a play for the cast, tension and nerves were high. Taylor Currier, who played Agnes Evans, the main character, described the feeling before taking the stage, “There were so many fight scenes and special effects that I was nervous to try. It was difficult to remember all of the scenes, and which move happened when.”
She Kills Monster was the first GHS play with heavy stage fighting and mean girl personas. It was also supported by a killer soundtrack. With music surrounding each scene, songs like Mama Said Knock You Out, Enter Sandman, I’ll Be There For You, and You Can’t Touch This roared throughout the theater and kept the crowd interacting with the show.
Along with the music, some cast members got to experiment with new personalities for their roles. Kaelyn Lavery, who played Vera, Agnes’ best friend, said that this was one of her favorite roles because of how sassy she got to be. “I was able to act as a sassy character and be someone other than my usual self. It was fun to be expressive and have a freedom of character choice.”
Overall, the consensus was that this show was higher on everyone’s list. Cast members, such as Kaelyn Lavery, expressed that this play fell in her top three due to the difference in show type, the music and physicality, and the energy throughout the cast. Taylor Currier stated, “This is by far my favorite play I’ve done at the high school. The role was certainly a challenge, but the story is beautiful, and I got to co-star with my best friend as Tilly, which made it all the more fun. I loved all of the special effects and music used.”
