In October 2023, my middle school students at Girls Athletic Leadership School (GALS) and I opened the world-premiere production of “Build-a-Play” by Pamela Morgan.

“Build-a-Play” is a quick 60-minute, high-octane comedy about a group of students tasked with writing a play for their school in an hour. But rather than write it the old-fashioned way, they utilize the brand new Build-a-Play system with holographic actors to create the play for them—until the holographic actors gain control of the manual and machine, turning the tables and creating hilarious mayhem.

**Because this show features minors and a new script, video of the show and production photos are available upon individual request.**

Directing this production was a challenge for me. It was my first time working with a limited rehearsal calendar due to students’ afterschool commitments, which meant constantly missing actors in rehearsal and limited time. Because the show needed to be double-cast, each cast rehearsed once per week for an hour and a half for about 9 weeks. Luckily, the script I had selected for the school was so concise, clear, and funny, that the students were full of creative energy and enthusiasm at every rehearsal. 

For this educational production, my goal as the director was to equip my actors with a toolkit to hone their comedic timing, encourage big and bold character choices, and infuse them with confidence leading up to the performance. While we had a tough moment during tech week, during which the actors had a bit of a reality check about the need to accurately memorize lines and cues, this production was overall an incredibly fun and vibrant environment and I feel so proud of what we accomplished and my students’ work onstage and backstage.