Our Town
at Woodbridge Senior High School

Reviewed on February 2, 2018

Anna Krelovich
Westfield High School
Submitted for publication to Cappies News

"This is the way we were: in our growing up and in our marrying and in our living and in our dying," the Stage Manager explains as she invites the audience to visit a small town in New Hampshire. With a glimpse into the way ordinary people lived their ordinary lives, Woodbridge Senior High School reveals the importance of appreciating every moment of life in their touching rendition of Our Town.

Thornton Wilder's Our Town first debuted on Broadway in February of 1938 to rave reviews, and went on to receive the Pulitzer Prize for Best Drama. A three-act metatheatrical play, Our Town follows actors as they perform in a show about the daily lives of those who live in the small, fictional New Hampshire town of Grover's Corners from 1901 to 1913. The Stage Manager narrates the production, consistently breaking the fourth wall, and inviting the audience into the lives of the Gibbs and Webb families as they navigate everyday tasks, young love, and mortality, learning to appreciate an all too fleeting life.

Fiona Good drove the show along as the wise Stage Manager, providing insights into the lives of those in Grover's Corner. Her poised maturity created a composed foundation for the show, and her interactions with the audience were intimate and insightful. Emily Webb (Rileigh Perkins) and George Gibbs (Gabe Ramirez) were adorably awkward in their youthful romance, growing perfectly into a committed marriage. Perkins effortlessly embodied childlike curiosity and enthusiasm, always carrying a spritely skip on her was to school and back, and aged to a devoted, if grieving, wife as she realizes the preciousness of life.

The young lovers' mothers, Mrs. Webb and Mrs. Gibbs, were portrayed by Lillie Cooper and Miriam Elhadidi, respectively. Cooper was a no-nonsense mother who was stern and demanding of her two children, Emily and Wally (Donovyn James); however, she later reveals her sensitive nature in a truly heartbreaking moment, tears streaming down her face as she mourns a loved one's premature death. Elhadidi was a caring mother and wife, while always clear of her wistfulness for a life greater that Grover's Corners. The two mothers interacted flawlessly, gossiping as they convincingly pantomimed snapping peas. Other standout performances included Kieran Weldon as Mr. Webb, who was caringly intimidating to his future son-in-law the day of Emily and George's wedding, and Rebekah Dobard as the gossiping choir-member Mrs. Soames.

The simplistic set utilized white chairs and tables to create the family homes, churches, and soda shops, and instead of props the cast pantomimed the objects with which they interacted. Utilizing universal lighting, the audience received an intimate experience that immersed them into Grover's Corners. The ambiance was completed by Sadie Sullivan and Mark Gonzales, who sat on stage creating an exceptionally unique soundscape. Using props or their voices, Sullivan and Gonzales created the sound of a warm crackling fire, an approaching steam train, or the clucking of chickens, immersing the audience into early 20th century life.

Grover's Corners is an ordinary town, complete with ordinary people and ordinary pleasures of life. Once in a thousand times, something interesting will happen. However, with a poignant take of the importance of life and heart-breaking nature of death, Woodbridge Senior High School's production of Our Town was anything but ordinary.

Jessie Yu
Oakton High School
Submitted for publication to Cappies News 2

We all have a limited time on this world, and the cast and crew of Woodbridge Senior High School chose to use some of their time to put on an intimate and thoughtful production of Our Town.

Written by Thornton Wilder in 1938, the metatheatrical play is set in a small fictional town in New Hampshire called Grover's Corners. Unfolding in three acts, the story follows a young girl, Emily Webb, from her teenage years to her early death by childbirth.

Serving as the link between the audience and the story, the Stage Manager, portrayed by Fiona Good, expertly bridged the gap left by a broken fourth wall. Good maintained a composed energy throughout the entire show, delivering her nearly constant monologue as the narrator without ever becoming monotonous or alienating the audience.

Emily Webb was played with sweet earnestness by Rileigh Perkins. Her effervescent nature introduced in the first act was carried well through all three, even as she matured and eventually learned to accept the finality of death and eternity.

Miriam Elhadidi stole the show in every scene she was in as Mrs. Gibbs. Her natural accent and gentle physicality immediately established her as a motherly figure, a quality which she kept constant through joys, sorrows, and even wistful reflection after her death. Her dynamic with her next-door neighbor, Mrs. Webb, portrayed by Lillie Cooper, was believable and enjoyable to watch. As the two women gossiped and bantered, they made everyday household chores interesting and engaging for the audience.

In a play heavy with existential themes, crucial comic relief was delivered in the middle of the second act by Gabe Ramirez as George Gibbs and Kieran Weldon as Mr. Webb. The two actors captured a hilariously awkward energy as Mr. Webb attempted to give his soon-to-be son-in-law some fatherly advice on marriage, much to the reluctance of both parties involved.

Several creative choices set Woodbridge's production apart. The use of universal lighting in a small black box theater successfully brought its audience seamlessly into the show, heightening the personal nature of the play. Everything was done by pantomime, and the only props in the show were used to create sound effects in a background display of onstage foley work. Mark Gonzales and Sadie Sullivan executed the sound effects seamlessly, delivering them in perfect sync with the actors' motions while being unobtrusive to the action taking place.

With an exemplary cast and crew, Woodbridge Senior High School brought Thornton Wilder's classic play to life. And as the stage manager bid everyone a good night and farewell, the audience was left to quietly reflect on the passage of time through life, love, death, and beyond.

Kristen Waagner
McLean High School
Submitted for publication to Patch.com

Welcome to Grover's Corners, Sutton County, New Hampshire. It's a quiet town, full of ordinary people, for whom life hasn't changed much since it was founded back in the 1670s. People are born, they marry, and they die, all in a small town in the Northeast. Woodbridge Senior High School has captured the simplistic beauty of Grover's Corners in "Our Town," bringing Thornton Wilder's metatheatrical vision to the stage with every bit of its original heart.

Set in 1901, the Pulitzer prize-winning drama is divided into three acts: Daily Life, Love and Marriage, and Death and Eternity. Each is orchestrated by an omniscient Stage Manager, who takes the audience through the lives of the Gibbs and Webb families. Written in 1938, "Our Town" is Thornton Wilder's most popular work, noted for its minimalist rendering and insight into human nature.

Fiona Good, the ever-present Stage Manager, drew the audience in to observe the world she was creating. Narrating the story with a mature presence and knowing air, Good shattered the fourth wall, blurring the lines between the play and reality.

The innocence of youth was embodied by the two young lovers of Grover's Corners, George Gibbs (Gabe Ramirez) and Emily Webb (Rileigh Perkins). Perkins translated Emily's character growth to the stage, from her curiosity about love in the first act, to doubt over her marriage in the second, and finally to her acceptance of reality in the third. Ramirez's sweet, awkward George complimented her confidence, making their relationship earnest and believable.

In juxtaposition with George and Emily's youthful love, Mr. and Mrs. Gibbs, played respectively by John D. Hurst and Miriam Elhadidi, perfectly captured the compromise, worry, comfort, and unconditional love that marriages contain. Elhadidi's physical manifestation of Mrs. Gibb's motherly nature was authentic and consistent. Their next door neighbors, the Webbs, introduced humor into the world of "Our Town." Mr. Webb's (Kieran Weldon) marital advice to George was one of the funniest moments of the night, while Mrs. Webb (Lillie Cooper) drew laughs with a simple look.

Creativity marked the technical elements of "Our Town." By using clean white chairs and ladders to create Grover's Corners, all focus was directed toward the actors. Pantomime furthered this effect, helped by the cast's impeccable specificity of movement. Even simple actions such as snapping peas or chasing chickens seemed realistic. One of the most impressive elements of "Our Town" were the onstage sound effects. Actors Mark Gonzales and Sadie Sullivan mimicked the sounds of doors closing, fire crackling, and bottles clinking with remarkable specificity, creating the live soundscape essential to the intimate feel of "Our Town."

In a world filled with division and strife, Woodbridge's "Our Town" reminds us to step away from life's "layers and layers of nonsense" and to cherish every moment we are able to spend with the ones we love.

Emily Lachow
McLean High School
Submitted for publication to Lorton Valley Star

Grover's Corners is the type of town where nothing big ever happens. Mothers string their beans in their yard, fathers drink coffee while reading the morning paper, and children do their homework in the moonlight. However, do these small-town people ever fully realize their lives while they live them? Woodbridge Senior High School reflected upon the meaning of life, love, and death in their touching rendition of Our Town.

Audiences were first immersed in Grover's Corners in 1938, at a Princeton, New Jersey theater. It debuted in New York City less than a month later, where it received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Our Town has since been adapted into a film, an opera, and a ballet. This Thornton Wilder work is famous for its usage of metatheatrical--or self aware--devices to capture the theme of transient human mortality. The play is broken into three distinct acts: "Daily Life" (which takes place in 1901), "Love and Marriage" (which takes place in 1904), and "Death and Eternity" (which takes place in 1913). The character of the Stage Manager guides the audience through the lives (and deaths) of the Grover's Corners residents, including the romance between Emily and George, the daily lives of their mothers, and the ritualistic cycle of life in a small town. This play is unique in that the props are pantomimed and the set is extremely minimalist.

One distinct feature of this play is the Stage Manager, who functions as the story's narrator. Fiona Good fully encompassed this role with her mature, guiding presence. Although Good never left the stage, she remained consistently engaged in the other characters' storylines; she was able to shrink and expand her stage presence depending on her role in each scene. Gabe Ramirez and Rileigh Perkins portrayed the blossoming romance between George Gibbs and Emily Webb. Ramirez's consistently youthful sincerity, paired with Perkins' evolution from child-like to mature, unfolded into an endearing love story that elicited both tears and laughter from the audience.

Grounding the Grover's Corners ensemble was the pairing of devoted mothers: Mrs. Gibbs (Miriam Elhadidi) and Mrs. Webb (Lillie Cooper). Elhadidi's transition from life to death was seamless; in life she performed with a warm maternal presence, while in death she carried herself with dignified stoicism. Cooper was similarly powerful, with a comedic prowess that punctured the heavy show with lightness. Her husband, Mr. Webb (Kieran Weldon), had a particularly memorable moment of hilarity during an awkward conversation with his future son-in-law. Other memorable performers included Mark Gonzales, who transitioned between his various secondary characters with ease, and Sadie Sullivan, who infused sweetness into the young Rebecca Gibbs.

Portraying live characters can be challenging, but portraying the dead is an entirely new hurdle. The ensemble portraying the deceased townsfolk instilled meaning into their stillness, pointedly contrasting Emily's frantic movements.

Onstage foley sound effects breathed life into the pantomimed movements of the actors. Mark Gonzales and Sadie Sullivan used bottles, foam, and their own mouths to create the sounds of a bustling town. Their sounds were clearly well-rehearsed, and skillfully incorporated into the production.

Life, love, and death were gracefully explored by Woodbridge Senior High School's students. Their refreshing take on a classic play reminded the audience that life is beautiful and fleeting, so we should take the time to savor every second.

Emma Shacochis
Oakton High School
Submitted for publication to InsideNoVa-Sun Gazette

Some days of your life you remember forever: weddings, birthdays, funerals. Other days just slide by, routine and uneventful. Woodbridge Senior High School's intimately staged and gracefully performed production of Thornton Wilder's "Our Town" is a celebration of the memorable moments and everyday lives in a quaint Northeastern town.

Since its 1938 Broadway debut, Thornton Wilder's Pulitzer Prize-winning play "Our Town" has paved its way as a classic and boasts a rich, 80-year history of accolades and adaptations: from a Tony Award-winning Broadway revival in 1989, an Academy Award-nominated film in 1940, and numerous reincarnations on television.

Spanning twelve years in the early 20th century, the play's three acts distinctly chronicle life, love, and death in the lives of the Webb and Gibbs families, as well as the fellow citizens of the small New England town of Grover's Corners.

As the Stage Manager, directing the Grover's Corners citizens about their daily lives with grace, Fiona Good's performance was that of a true renaissance woman. Adapting to any role necessary, Good provided exposition to the audience, officiated weddings, made ice cream sodas, and delivered each monologue with evident care for the characters.

The matriarchs of the Gibbs and Webb families, played by Miriam Elhadidi and Lillie Cooper, respectively, proved themselves as standouts. As the mother to George (Gabe Ramirez), Elhadidi's grasp on emotional beats made her posthumous reflection with her daughter-in-law a powerful finale. And as Emily's (Rileigh Perkins) mother, Cooper chats with neighbors and swoops around her kitchen as if she'd been doing it all her life. As the mothers cook breakfast in the morning, both actresses pantomime the preparation in sweet synergy; and their interlude while snapping peas on the porch allows to two to swap anecdotes with a charming, natural delivery.

Additionally, as Emily's caring and witty father, Kieran Weldon's Mr. Webb was pitch-perfect in delivering an awkward pre-wedding talk to his future son-in-law.

Not only did the ensemble provide a palpable sense of community, smooth scene transitions, and skillful pantomimes of sipping coffee and tossing newspapers, but they worked as one to effectively shift the play's tone throughout the three acts. As they went from weeping tears of joy at a wedding to sobbing through heartbreak at the burial of a loved one, the cast supplied authenticity to the scene's emotional thesis.

"Our Town" is typically performed as minimalistic as possible, so as to engage the audience, and there's no exception here. The use of universal lighting is incredibly immersive, and the "scenery, for those who need scenery", comes via the sparse and durable sets of tables, chairs, and ladders.

Practically becoming a character itself, the unique sound design (Sadie Sullivan, Mark Gonzales, Ella Baumann) was sharply timed and realistic. From vocal performances as running water and whinnying horses, the tapping of foam boards for doors shutting, bubble wrap popping as a crackling fire, and a rainstick and metal sheet for thunderstorms, the sounds of everyday life are incorporated into the performance in a myriad of creative ways.

"Our Town", from its dedicated cast to the fantastically inventive Foley work, shines in scenes both quiet and impactful. The simplicity of the story will draw you in, and the thought-provoking themes are sure to connect with anyone who knows what it is to love, lose, and live.