Monique would do anything to escape what she believes is the scariest place in the world: Middle school.
But when she finds herself in a strange new place surrounded by a bunch of odd characters, Monique begins to have second thoughts about returning to those familiar school hallways.
Heidi Thelin, a 14-year-old Culpeper Middle School eighth-grader, will portray this embattled character in her school’s version of “Freak” .
Written by Angela Hill, this one-act contemporary drama features a cast of 26 middle school students dealing with the consequences of bullying.
“Everyday it gets harder and harder,” Monique tells Maniacal Max the ringmaster (Catie McCormack). “I know I should just suck it up and ignore it. Just pretend. But as much as I try, as tight as I close my eyes … it’s still there. That hall. That long, cold, terrifying hall … Everyday at 10:43, it’s the scariest place on earth. What did I do? How come it’s me? Everyday. All the time. What makes me the freak?”
After wishing to flee the constant torments of her classmates, Monique ends up at the circus sideshow, otherwise known as the
Freak Show.
“She just wants to disappear because she thinks nobody likes her and she’s all alone,” Heidi explained before Thursday’s first of three performances.
“At first, she doesn’t really like it until she starts to see that she can relate to some of the characters. She also learns that other people have insecurities, too. In the end, I learned that you don’t have to feel alone.”
Some of the freakish characters include: Lilly the fat lady, (Chloe Dawson, Lizzie Sabio)
Esmeralda (Sara Knott)
Kitty the cat lady (Lyndsay Morgan)
Benny the bat boy, (Clay WArner)Kitty the cat lady, (Lyndsay Morgan),
conjoined twins Flora and Fauna, (Elizabeth Steimel, Kacey Orr)
Twyla the tattoo lady, (Logan Bogert)
Sophia Mosby, who plays disfigured Bella in the Freak Show, explained that everyone has certain concerns about themselves.
“We all have to learn to embrace our insecurities and make the best of them,” said the 13-year-old CMS eighth-grader.
Zachary Greenfield, a 13-year-old CMS eighth-grader who plays Damien the demon, said portraying his character helped him understand empathy for others.
“You can actually feel how they feel about being the one (picked on),” said Zachary.
CMS Drama Director Deborah Edwards said this play will serve as the school’s kickoff to the “Acting Against Bullying” campaign.
“It’s an anti-bullying program through theater education,” Edwards explained Thursday. “I would really like to bring awareness to the community about this.”
Students will also participate in different bullying scenarios once a week, Edwards added.
“We decided to put this on as a school production after the kids received a lot of positive feedback from administration,” Edwards said.
News article written by Rhonda Simmons from the Star Exponant
Pictures by Krista Mosby
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