The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
at Aliso Niguel

Reviewed on November 7, 2019

Kristen Slymen
Capistrano Valley
Submitted for publication to OC Cappies

ANHS' The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime Equals Tenderness
written by Kristen Slymen, a junior at Capistrano Valley High School

Aliso Niguel High School performs a heartwarming production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime. The show includes an autistic boy, a well-intentioned father, a flawed mother, and one dead dog. The boy has a mission to figure out what happened to his neighbor's dog, and along the way he learns more about his parents, and ultimately helps strengthen his family's bonds.

Mateo Yepiz creates a believable Christopher with dedicated gestures and body movement, never once breaking character or faltering in his accent, while maintaining precise articulation. His facial expressions and vocal inflections convey every hint of confusion, frustration, and pure happiness, connecting to the audience and touching hearts.

Luke Colomerbo matches the emotional impact as Ed, Chrisopher's father. His contrast of large gestures and loud projection to when he was gentle and softly spoken help create the realness of a struggling father doing his best to help his son. To the opposite effect Judy (Leah Fahim) is a mother who ran away from her struggles, but still cares. Fahim is able to communicate love and regret through her continuous loving tone and elegant demeanor.

Mrs. Alexander (Emilie Manville) is very sweet. Manville moves slowly and bends over to better portray her character as old and delicate. She brings a sincere voice into the storyline. The Station Policeman (Daunte Mosley) is another minor, yet strong character, displaying sternness as an officer with his harsh instructions and posture.

The actors' touching performances pairs remarkably with the stunning technical aspects. The set, by Max Marquez, allows props to enter the stage from cubbies without any of the performers having to leave the stage. This effect creates seamless transitions from scene to scene, which also has to be credited to stage management by Gia Ventura.

The lighting of this show, designed by Ian Little, is a key part of the story telling. The lighting includes UV lights that reveal numbers on the stage that provide comfort to Christopher. In addition, the lighting design complements the set by fitting in the grid that is painted. The lighting reveals the world through Christopher's eyes by appearing in a logical manner and highlighting areas where Christopher looks.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime by ANHS is uplifting and moving due to the wonderful actors and crew.

Annemarie Verkuylen
Mater Dei
Submitted for publication to OC Cappies Facebook

Aliso Niguel's The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time" is quite fetching
written by Annemarie Verkuyken, a senior at Mater Dei High School

While the hustle and bustle of a train station may be inconsequential to most, the millions of signs, flickering lights, and the clamor of people creates an overwhelming environment for a boy like Christopher Boon. Aliso Niguel's production of Simon Stephens' The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time demonstrates the daily struggles of living with autism with dynamic characters and innovative ensemble work that draws the audience in.

Stephens' portrayal of the inner-workings of Christopher's brilliant mind is an adaptation of Mark Haddon's novel of the same name. A teenage boy, Christopher Boon, is falsely accused of his neighbor's dog's death. As he investigates the crime, the fifteen-year old math genius uncovers many secrets that drive him to leave the comfort of home for London.

Mateo Yepiz never misses a beat with fidgeting mannerisms and a constant energy that indicates Christopher's inquisitive nature. He embodies the character as he listens mindfully to other characters and allows the words to register before responding, allowing the audience to see Christopher's mind at work.

Ed, portrayed by Luke Colombero, brings to life the struggles of parenting an autistic child. With constantly changing volume and physicality, he shows the character's dimensions. He is sweet and caring as he tucks Christopher into bed, yet lashes out in frustration when his son goes against his wishes. Ed finds an opposite in Judy, played by Leah Fahim. With a maternal tenderness, Leah demonstrates a softer side that allows her character to form real connections with Christopher. She skillfully resolves the tension with both Ed and Roger (Royal Fucillo) with an aura of calm that keeps her son at ease.

The technical elements of the show come together to imagine Christopher's emotions and thoughts. Ian Little's lighting design plays with colors to convey comfort and discomfort. The color red, Christopher's favorite color, demonstrates moments of calm and relaxation while the color yellow, one of Christopher's least favorite colors, indicates discomfort and panic. Sound designer Adam Little creates an overwhelming atmosphere that mimics the sensory complications caused by autism. It allows the audience to gain insight into this individual's world and to empathize with their challenges.

At Aliso Niguel, the attention to detail in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time effortlessly brings awareness to the complexities of autism.

Amelia Bellah
Dana Hills
Submitted for publication to OC Cappies Facebook

Unravel The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime at Aliso Niguel High School
written by Amelia Bella, a senior at Dana Hills High School

Aliso Niguel High School's production of "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime" shows the world through the eyes of a boy with autism, Christopher. When his neighbor's dog Wellington mysteriously dies, Christopher vows to catch the killer. As Christopher investigates and dives deeper into Wellington's death, secrets unravel and truths reveal themselves.

Fully embracing all aspects of his role, Mateo Yepiz gives an outstanding performance as Christopher. Through the way he walks and talks, Yepiz showcases amazing physicality as he embraces Christopher's life.

Always offering a friend to talk to, Emilie Manville's character attempts to be there for Christopher in his troubling time. Fully embracing her character, Emilie Manville's physicality helps to further portray her role of Mrs. Alexander as she takes her time walking slowly and hunches her back over a cane. Maintaining the typical friendly old lady next door with cookies or some sort of other sweet treats, Manville gives an amazing performance.

Set Designer, Max Marquez, creates a simplistic set that effectively and quickly transforms into various locations throughout the show and provides a unique way of delivering props to the actors. In order to accommodate with lack of exits for the actors to retrieve any props, Marquez creates cubbies hidden in plain sight along the edges of the stage. These cubbies effectively provide the actors with easy access to their props allowing smooth transitions. The use of the stage as a black box provides the audience with a 360 view, allowing each side to watch the show from a different perspective almost like how Christopher sees the world from a different perspective.

Working hand in hand with the set, lighting, designed by Ian Little, transported the audience by assisting in creating different locations throughout the show. By lighting specific areas of the stage, the lighting designer assisted in creating an array of locations throughout the performance. Illuminating small, specific areas around the edge of the stage creates various houses as Christopher approaches all of his neighbors while investigating the mysterious death of Wellington.

Aliso Niguel's combination of technical elements and acting choices drawing the audience in and showing Christopher's life through his eyes created an amazing and heartwarming story.