Sean Reagle ’27, Keira Gallagher ’28
This year’s fall play, A Wrinkle In Time, is a fresh new pick for the Episcopal Academy’s theater department, seeing as its sci-fi genre hasn’t been commonly selected for past productions. Students, teachers, parents, and alumni alike are eager to see what this special show has in store for the community.
A Wrinkle in Time encapsulates the epitome of Episcopal Academy’s core values: love, courage, individuality, and self-identity. The story follows a young girl named Meg Murry (Charlotte Jones ’28), her incredibly smart brother, Charles Wallace (Sean Reagle ’27), and their friend, Calvin (Reid Lawler ’26) as they travel through space and time to find their father (Alex Letts ’25), led by three magical ladies named Mrs. Whatsit (Fraser Wein ’27), Mrs. Who (Lucia Forte ’26), and Mrs. Which (Elizabeth Doyle ’25). Throughout this journey to find her father, Meg learns more about herself, and her family, and that it’s okay to feel lost sometimes.
The Episcopal Academy’s approach to their production of this Tracy Young adapted play is especially unique. Daniel Clay, Theatre Department Chair and director of the show, discusses their new approach: “I love that we’re doing something different than we usually do. We haven’t done a sci-fi fantasy play before and trying to do that on stage in the black box theater, no less, is a challenge. So, that’s my favorite part of it–trying to figure out how to create special effects, either using technology or using actors, to try to come up with something that represents what’s supposed to be happening on stage.” Clearly, this is a challenging but very exciting show that is sure to wow audience members.
Photo courtesy of @eadominoclub Instagram
Clay discusses his excitement about the play, only a few weeks before opening night. “I’m excited because it’s a challenge. The actors haven’t had as much time to rehearse, so they’re trying to figure things out on the fly, and they have a lot to worry about. There are also probably more props in this show than we’ve ever had in any show. So they’re trying to get used to working with their props and all that. I’m just excited about the challenge of the whole thing.” Ellen Casey, ’27, also shares in the excitement, “I’m always excited to see the costumes. It’s also just so much fun to see the difference between the first couple of rehearsals and then the final show; you get to see how it progresses and how much everyone improves, especially the freshmen. It’s great to see the freshmen go from scared middle schoolers to confident high schoolers in their first high school show.”
The Episcopal Academy theater community has been very supportive during this process, seeing as virtually none of the cast and crew have participated in a show quite like this one. Charlotte Jones, ’28, elaborates on this sentiment, “My favorite part about this show has been working with the other talented actors and upperclassmen, and learning so much from them…I’m having the best first Upper School theater experience because the upperclassmen have been so supportive of me throughout everything. When I first started out, I was really scared and overwhelmed because being thrown into a principal role is really daunting, especially for a freshman, and they made that less scary.” Cloud Parker ’27 adds to this idea, “Working in the cast with a lot of talented actors can be kind of intimidating or scary at first because I thought that I was doing many things wrong. Through encouragement from others, and working scenes and complications out, I’ve learned that everybody is learning the show at the same time.” With the constant support of the theater community, the play is coming along without a hitch.
A Wrinkle in Time explores a theme quite similar to this year’s chapel theme, “Power Made Perfect in Weakness.” Throughout her journey, Meg Murry struggles with embracing her imperfections and loving herself for who she is. Until Mrs. Which reminds her: “You must remember to appreciate your faults,” she does not accept that her power is made perfect in her weakness. As Meg learns to grow in self-love, she allows the audience to grow with her.