From page to stage, Rancho Cucamonga High School drama students brought their most recent play, “Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors,” to life onstage from Thursday, Oct. 23, to Saturday, Oct. 25. A mixture of horror and comedy, the play was made to have its audience members at the edges of their seats, unsure of what was to come next.
During the play, some audience members gave their opinions on whether the actors were portraying their characters well.
“Yes, I think they have, because I feel like they pour in so much soul into their characters. They don’t just act their characters, they become their characters,” sophomore Davien Shobey said.
On that same note, senior Rosie Flenniken also felt as though the cast members applied “their own spin on the characters.”
“Yes, absolutely. I think each cast really puts their own spin on their characters, but they both do it very, like, honestly and faithfully, and it makes for a really good show,” Flenniken said.
According to those watching the play, the set was an audience favorite.
“The set is so cool,” Flenniken said. “This is one of our coolest sets, so far, and the tech people have put so much work and effort into it, and we’re really proud of them, it’s really cool how it looks.”
Junior Vex Lindenbaum also gave their opinion on the set.
“I cannot praise our set lead and just everyone in set enough because they have been working hard every day, and the set looks phenomenal and their hard work shows,” Lindenbaum said.
Lindenbaum elaborated on what they thought of the props and special effects, as well.
“The special effects and props? Amazing!” Lindenbaum said. “It’s honestly just one of the best special effects we’ve done since ‘Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,’ and I honestly love it for that and being so unique.”
After the plays concluded, different cast members shared their thoughts about how they felt they performed.
“I think I did really, really well, and I think the whole cast did really, really well today,” junior Sage Alauddin, who played Bosun/Man Eating Wolf, said. “It was very well received by the audience; we were getting a lot of reactions and laughs from the audience. I love my cast and they’re all amazing actors.”
Junior Malcolm Whitehead, who played Jonathan Harker, also reflected on how he performed throughout the play.
“I think I performed quite well,” Whitehead said. “I say this because I was, like, really nervous going into this show. I was really nervous backstage before the curtains opened, and I went out there, I showed up, and I showed out.”
Whitehead proceeded to explain his favorite part of the show.
“My favorite part of the play had to have been when I came out in my rock star outfit,” Whitehead said. “I liked it because I was able to live loose and flex my muscles.”
Junior Dawson Hyde, who played Dracula, described his favorite part.
“My personal favorite part, I had this one bit where I would jump on a bed, and I had this whole mini monologue,” Hyde said. “It’s just really funny because I get to fully be stupid on stage and it’s great.”
When asked if he enjoyed acting in the play, Hyde claimed to have “absolutely adored” acting in it.
“I absolutely adored acting in this play,” Hyde said. “One of my favorite things ever is acting. It just lets you be whatever you want in the most outlandish way you want, it’s great.”
In addition, Alauddin also explained why she enjoyed acting in it.
“This show is hilarious,” Alauddin said. “I love being in the background, and being able to create my own character, even if not everyone in the audience notices what we do in the background, it makes a huge impact on the whole show.”
For some students within the drama industry, it is everything to them. Whitehead explained that he enjoyed acting in the play due to his “passion” for being an actor.
“Yes, I enjoyed acting in it to the fullest extent because acting is something that I fell in love with since my sophomore year, it’s something that I want to do after high school,” Whitehead said. “I’m in love with acting, and acting is a passion that I have.”
While the cast and audience members gave positive feedback, Mr. James Loudermilk, director of the RCHS Drama Program, also explained how he felt the play went down.
“The play was amazing,” Loudermilk said. “The kids worked so hard, and it was spectacular.”
Although the spectators and actors gave specific examples as to what their favorite moment of the play was, Loudermilk had a differing opinion.
“My favorite part of the play was our last Saturday rehearsal,” Loudermilk said. “I think that all of the pieces, all of the costumes, set, props, run crew, cast, everything came together. It was a really magical rehearsal day to see everything finally fall into place.”
Following the conclusion of “Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors,” the RCHS Drama Program announced its spring production of “Young Frankstein.”
Audition dates and requirements are soon to be released on the drama website at rchs-drama.com.
