Image provided by: West Linn High School; West Linn, OR
About The amplifier. (West Linn, Oregon) 1921-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 1, 2010)
Published Since 1921 Official Student Publication of West Linn High School January 2010 - Volume 98, Issue 4 Romeo and Juliet casts more than students N icole C ampbell & J ulia V an W inkle Most school plays are understandably cast with only students. However, "Romeo and Juliet," which opens on Feb. 25 features nine adults as well. "W orking with adult cast members, many of whom are professional actors, will be such an enriching experience," Anna Stapleton (Juliet), junior, said. The students cast in "Romeo and Juliet" will work with the adults, who come from all different backgrounds. Some are teachers, some are professional actors and some are both.-Normally students play all of the roles, but in "Romeo and Juliet" all of the adult roles will be played by adults. "I am most excited about the fact that I get to work with adult actors... This opportunity will be such a great experience for me as an actor," Michael Johnson (Romeo), junior, said. O n D ec. 7 , a u d itio n s , . followed by callbacks, were held to finalize parts. The lead roles of "Romeo and Juliet" were awarded to Johnson and Stapleton. Students Tyler Whitcomb (Paris), senior, Lucy Walker (Mercutio), senior, Dayne Scanlon (Benvolio), junior, Peter Bonoff (Tybalt), junior, Louie Hogan (Balthasar), junior, were also cast, among others who will appear in minor roles and as part of the ensemble. "They [Johnson and Stapleton] are perfect for the roles in many ways— it is a complex puzzle and they are a perfect fit," Jessica Murray, director, said. The nine adult cast members are: Annie Kaiser, Theatre Production, (Nurse); Robin Bowles, Theatre Faculty at University of Portland, (Friar Laurence); Colin Murray, Theatre Faculty at University of Portland, (Lord Capulet); Nancy Monson, Science, (Lady Capulet); Ward Lewis, English, (Lord Montague); Diane Gauthier, Fine Arts, (Lady Montague); Gary Eppelsheimer, Photo/Film, (Friar John); Mike Lord, Social Studies, (Apothecary); Photo by Alex Houston Avery Breyne-Cartwright, senior, Jessica Murray, director, Megan Kays, junior, Kyle Re villa, senior, Thomas Olson, sophomore, and Bradley Stone, freshman, rehearse for "Romeo and Juliet." The play, which opens on Feb. 25 and runs through March 6, features both adults and students as cast members. "I think it is cool to have teachers and adults in the cast. I like the fact that we teachers can learn from our a n d M u rra y , T h e a tre A rts s tu d e n ts ," L o rd , said . Director, (Prince Escalus). Though there are many adults cast, 26 students will take part in the play as well, and about another 15 backstage. The play features two families, the Montagues and the Capulets, that have been feuding for many years. Though their families hate each other, Romeo and Juliet, fall deeply in love and plan to marry in secret. Rehearsals for "Romeo and Juliet" officially started . o n Jan. 5. The actors w ill continue to practice the play until opening night on Feb. 25. Tickets for the show will be $8 for adults and $6 for students. The play will continue to run until March Mr. WLHS in danger of being cancelled D anny M c G arry ______________ Being in a pageant isn't everybody's dream , but for som e students, the Mr. W LH S contest helps them to realize their dream of com peting, w hile allow ing them to donate to charity as w ell. W ith only five boys signed up so far, the annual event m ight be cancelled. "We ju st need to set a date that everybody needs to be signed up by," Kelsey Bradshaw , senior and A SB D irector of M ajor School Events, said. "Hopefully, Mr. W LH S w ill be happening." If 10-12 contestants sign up, as has been traditionally been the case, A SB is hoping to hold Mr. W LH S in the spring. Since the production of "Rom eo and Juliet" is being held in the theatre, Mr. W LH S w ill be held in the gym if it happens. "Last year there w ere around six or seven guys that com peted in the event, bu t about four guys dropped out of the com petition last m inute," G abe W elp, C lass of 2009, said. In the contest, students Photo by Hannah Zaayer Last year's Mr. WLHS winner, Joey Leckey, Class of 2009, poses with nearly $1,000 in prize money. All winnings from the competition go to a charity of the winner's choice. Leckey chose to donate to the Make-a-Wish foundation. com pete in a "fake beauty pageant" as a part of the festivities. Usually, the contestants don't take the pageant aspect seriously and it is fun both for the audience and the contestants. The event aim s to raise $2,000 for a charity of the w inner's choice. The contestants com pete in categories including talent, sw im w ear, question and answer, and group and individual dances. "M y favorite category w ould have had to been sw im w ear because I got the chance to cool off and get out of the stuffy suits w e had to wear," Welp said. Kyle Revilla, senior, is thinking about entering the contest. "I w anted to do this for m yself. I norm ally don't get a say in m uch but I w ant to. N obody really inspired me to do this. It's kind of a goal for m yself," Revilla said. "I really hope I do get in." H annah Zaayer, senior, w as at the com petition last year. "It seem ed like everybody enjoyed it last year. There w as a sw im suit portion and they w ore extravagant bathing suits." Students w ho are interested in com peting in Mr. W LH S can sign up in Room A101 or talk to Bradshaw. Welp challenged this year's seniors. "The Class of 2010 is w ay lacking in spirit and needs to get m ore involved w ith their school. It's alw ays rew arding to raise m oney for a charity and have fun at the sam e tim e," he said. 6. Tickets can be purchased at the box office or from the theatre web site. Speech and Debate Team logs wins B enjamin M ann Speech and Debate Team m em bers recorded w ins including several at one of the largest tournaments in Oregon, which took place at Pacific University and fea tured over 44 schools. On Jan. 8 and 9 at Pacific, two entrants of Public Fo rum Debate, Justin Altemus and Josh Grelewicz, juniors, advanced to finals, placing second overall. The team was also very successful at a competition on Jan. 16, taking place at Glencoe High School. Elise Brown, freshman, won first in Poetry in an open division, which contained both junior and senior division entrants. Benjamin Mann and Neelou Etasam i, seniors, placed first and finaled in Radio, respectively. .The Speech and Debate team consists of nearly a dozen students interested in public speaking and the debating current event issues. The team meets Wednesdays after school in the Forum and competes on weekends. The team has participated in competitions at several other schools this year, including Barlow and Clackamas and will be competing in Dis tricts this March at home.
