The three one-act plays that comprise the "Of Mice and Chocolate" show are "The Country Mouse and the Missing Lunch Mystery," "Homework Eats Dog and Other Woeful Tales" and "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory." The performances will be held both Friday and Saturday night at 7 p.m. in the BHS auditorium, 500 7th St. Tickets to the shows are $5 for adults and $3 for students.
Since auditions came to a close in early February, approximately 80 BMS students have grasped the concepts of theatre - from being on stage to assisting behind the scenes. Along the way, six BHS students have served as student-directors, and Toreador Theatre Director Mary Neumayer said it has been a positive experience for the high school thespians.
"They're really enjoying it," she said. "I'm seeing the blossoming of some very good leadership skills."
Many familiar faces from this year's performances of "Grease" and "The People Versus Maxine Lowe" helped make the three one-act plays possible. Junior Hannah Anderson and senior Abby Noelck directed "The Country Mouse and the Missing Lunch Mystery." Junior Sam Bass and sophomore Aja Porter served as directors for "Homework Eats Dog and Other Woeful Tales," while senior Jess Fullerton and junior Hallie Cook directed "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory."
"I truly enjoy watching the kids direct these shows because their take is a just little bit different than my take and it usually works for the better," Neumayer said. "Each show has its own unique aspects."
From cute to humorous to a classical children's favorite, the three plays all have something different to offer.
Neumayer said "The Country Mouse and the Missing Lunch Mystery" is a spin-off of "Country Mouse, City Mouse," where middle school students had to portray "cute characters," which involved a lot of improvisation to portray animals.
"Homework Eats Dog and Other Woeful Tales" is a play that is sure to deliver laughs as it is a different take of "My Dog Ate My Homework."
"It's about the millions of different excuses kids can come up with as to why they shouldn't have to do their homework," Neumayer said.
The children's favorite "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" is based on the Roald Dahl book that tells the adventures of the young Charlie Bucket and the infamous candy titan, Willy Wonka. Though the play is based on the book, the students have also implemented aspects of the 2005 Tim Burton film into the performance.
When selecting directors, Neumayer said she looked for students who displayed good leadership and organizational skills. Directors of the plays were selected after completing essays explaining why they would be a good director and why they wished to undertake the experience.
For Fullerton, directing "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" was an opportunity to see her vision come to life.
"I think it's a lot of fun because I get to expand my vision to the whole cast and not to just my character, and it's kind of fun to see my vision come alive on stage," Fullerton said.
Noelck, who did not become involved in theatre until her sophomore year of high school, said it was a chance to see theatre from a different perspective.
"It has just been really fun to be able to teach what I know about theatre to the middle schoolers," Noelck said. "I just wanted to see how much they already know and watch them come alive when on stage."
Toreador Theatre Assistant Director Lisa Groen-Hite and Toreador Theatre Technical Director Anthony Foley gave extra assistance to the students and for some it helped them see all aspects of a performance.
"For me, I've learned so much more about the technical aspects of theatre from being a director and all of the other things that go into making a show possible that I didn't know as an actress," Noelck said.
Serving as directors also allowed the high school students to watch the middle school students grow as thespians.
"It's fun to see how they change from the start of the month to the end of the month because some of them just completely come out of their shell on stage," Noelck said.
Noelck said that directing the younger students also helps the high school students improve as actors and actresses.
"From an audience perspective, you notice things that can help you in your own performances," she said.
Like most high school students, Noelck has a busy schedule and was unable to be present during the cast selections. However, she said working with the other five student-directors was an advantage.
"It's really fun to deliberate with all six directors, debating over kids to get that perfect cast," she said. "It's fun to see it come together with the vision you have when you read the show."
From forming the casts to putting it all together, the students involved have enjoyed the experience and are ready to showcase their talents on center stage this weekend.
"It's so different from when you read it and when you see it with people saying the lines," Noelck said. "They're really creative kids and they're great kids to work with."
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