I got the chance to see the Stockton Theatre Club’s performance of Hello Herman. The show focuses on the story of a boy, Herman Howards, who murders about forty people in his high school. A reporter tries to learn the reason why Herman has committed such a violent crime. As they speak through his journey more characters are revealed and parts of Herman’s past are relived. From Herman dealing with his parent’s divorce to seeing his sister die, after be hitting by a car, while he gets bullied, the reasons for his crime become slightly more clear. Herman discusses how he wants to be remembered like no one else, how there will be more of him, but once the reporter turns off the camera, everything changes. Mikey, the actor playing Herman, began to shake and speaks of how scared he is and how he wants to take it all back. It is too late for Herman however. The next day, he is executed.
This show definitely has a darker side to it than most of the shows I have seen. Friends of mine left feeling sick and completely disturbed. Their feelings were created by the remorseless acting of Mikey, along with depressed Ms. Howards, played by Taylor. The other characters in the show also added to the cringe factor that the lines already held. This show is not like most, in the sense that you watch people get murder by a teenage boy, the reporter beat a man with a bat, a mother have a hysterical break down, or an electrocution. All of these events are seen in Herman and leave you feeling just a little too close and in touch with what happenings before, during, and after a school shooting. While this closeness was disturbing I think there is a very relevant point in doing it. School shootings happen all to frequently, and while we mourn them, many are not a part of them. This show brings you deep within what it is like to be tangled with characters like Howard, his mother, and the reporter. Disturbing, as it is this play shows you the true horror of death and destruction.

During the days of October 9-13, the Stockton Theatre Club put on Walter Wykes’ tragicomedy, The Profession in the experimental theatre. It was directed by Dan Cerullo, and featured three actors, Jeremy Rotolo, Taylor Cawley, and Ryan Gorman. The second night of the show I helped sell concessions as well as watching the show. The fifth night I went again, but solely as an audience member. The first night was fun and I saw a lot of the comedy and laughed.

Moments were absolutely hysterical, Taylor’s facial expressions were beyond compare, and Jeremy’s timid sense of being was always there for a laugh, while Ryan’s intimidating nature only increased the comedy with him and Jeremy. While the show had its serious moments it was on an overall, funny and quite enjoyable. I found myself laughing as Taylor, portraying the character of Ibid, would creepily smile her way through lines. I couldn’t take Jeremy too seriously as I watched his character of Eugene fumble over words in the beginning, laughing the whole time. Ryan too, had a smile on my face as he played Schäffer, found a way to always get just a little too close to Eugene, and had the audience laughing. The first night I saw the show was full of smiles and laughter, while the second night of seeing the show brought me something entirely different.

The second night of the show brought about a whole new set of emotions. Instead of seeing the comedy I found a more disturbing show. I found Ryan’s booming voice chilling, Taylor’s eerie smile and constant reactions that were just too quick, Jeremy’s questioning of power and society. The show and the plot continually brought my mind to darker places, as the motives behind actions switched from comical to tragic. The monologues became disturbing and unnerving, as the cruel side of humanity was revealed.

The longer I watched the show the more disturbed and moved I felt. Instead of comedy I found a deeper meaning. It was amazing how much a show can change in your mind as you view it more than once. I wish I could have gone all of the nights to see a greater progression in my views of the show. Theatre is an amazing thing, and the change and progression in a show is even more amazing. I cannot wait for the upcoming show, Hello Herman. 

Although I have attended a few Stockton events so far, the Theatre Club’s Whose Line, on September 23^rd, was one that stuck out to me. The first Whose Line that I saw was during the Honors Experience, where I met one of my now, best friends, who is also in the Honors program. I unfortunately missed the second Whose Line during welcome week, but got to usher and attend this past week’s, for which I am incredibly thankful.

Involving myself with the Theatre Club was a choice that I can already tell I am not likely to regret. Standing outside of the Campus Center Theatre provided me with the chance to see people supporting the group of actors who were about to go on stage, and ultimately the most important people that would be at the show, the audience. With out an audience a show and actors are nothing. Then being an audience member I was able to appreciate not only how funny the actors are, but how much bravery they have. Being able to go up on stage in front of a crowd with no plan or idea of what will happen is a scary thing.

After being in my high school’s drama club I understand the rush of getting on stage, but before this Whose Line, I never understood the heart pounding rush of getting on stage with no plan. I joined the actors on stage during this Whose Line during the rhyming game. As I stood in line waiting to taking my turn, performing a rhyming scene, I could feel the old feeling of adrenaline in my veins and a new feeling of nervousness as I tried to think of a word that was hard to rhyme. Suddenly I was in the front of the line rhyming words here and there, enjoying myself in a way that I forgot I could. I thought that with the end of high school, it would be the end of my time on a stage, but Whose Line reminded me of why it was a part of my life I never wanted to lose, the joy of being on a stage.