For the first time in more than 20 years, the MHS Players are in the state finals of the state Class A Maine One Act Festival
For the first time in more than 20 years, the MHS Players are in the state finals of the state Class A Maine One Act Festival.
Messalonskee’s thespians will take to the stage at 7 tonight at Windham High School to vie for top honors with their rendition of The Lottery, a play based on the famous short story by Shirley Jackson.
“2004 was the last time the MHS players were in the state final,” Messalonskee Drama director Andrew Turner said.
Messalonskee is one of eight teams competing for a title in the two-day festival. The MHS Players are among the three drama groups that perform tonight – the remaining five are scheduled for the second and final day on Saturday.
The MHS Players earned the right to compete in the state finals by winning one of eight regional competitions held across Maine earlier this month.
Turner said the key to the victory proved to be the collective excellence of the MHS Players – in March Madness terms the quality would be described as teamwork.
As Messalonskee students attending the Players performance of The Lottery on Thursday at the high school can attest, a dark and foreboding tension is the play’s calling card. The tension generated, Turner said, is a result of his Thespians teamwork.
This is a departure from what is often the case with high school drama groups, he said. Typically, he said, one or two leading actors carry the show.
“They were able to build that tension as a group,” he said of the MHS Players, “so it wasn’t a monologue.”
Turner said Messalonskee’s competition at the festival are the traditional powerhouses of Class A drama: Edward Little, Hermon, Kennebunk, Lawrence, Oceanside, Thornton Academy, and Yarmouth.