This Year’s High School Play - An Interview with Ms Shreeve

By Leni Wascher

Every year, students from the high school at ISA get the chance to participate in the High School Play. The high school play creates a community of creative thinkers, in which each and every student’s talent is encapsulated into a play. In addition, it fosters people’s self-discovery. For this year’s play, we wanted to listen to The Voice of Ms Shreeve, the DP theatre teacher and director of the high school play.

How long have you been teaching theatre, what got you into the field of theatre, and what fascinates you the most?

I have been teaching theatre since 2000, so for 24 years. I started teaching in the UK, then I did a master’s in directing, and then I went into International Schools, teaching. I also did some freelance work in London, directing and working with young people in school, and then I went to the International School of Paris for nine years, which is where I was before I came here. My passion is for directing. At school I’ve always loved theatre, I thought I liked acting, but now I’ve realised that I really love directing. 

What differentiates acting in theatre class in school from acting in the high school play outside of school?

There are a lot of similarities, but, I suppose, doing the high school play is about doing a play from scratch until it is as good as we can possibly make it, whereas in classes in high school it’s about learning techniques, learning about theory, so it’s not about necessarily a final performance. It’s about, kind of, learning about the processes of theatre, and not everyone in theatre class wants to act, so it’s different, but there are obviously similarities. There are students that like to do both, who chose to do the play because it pushes their skills even further.

What is this year’s high school play about?

This year’s high school play is called “A Monster Calls”, and it’s about a boy called Connor, who is basically having a really hard time. His mum is dying, it’s never said, but we assume that she has cancer, and this monster appears to him. He thinks the monster comes to help him, but the monster is a quite annoying monster, and it tells him stories, and makes him face his own truth. It’s quite a sad story, and quite different to things I’ve done in the past.

What inspired the decision to do A Monster Calls?

I really like the story, and I heard that there’s a play of it. I have not seen the play version, but I have read the play version, and I thought it could be a really exciting thing to do. Like I said, it’s nothing I have ever done before. When I moved to Amsterdam and I spoke to my Head of Department, we talked about the possible plays , and she said that, in the past couple of years, the plays have been quite light-hearted, so that made me think it would maybe be time to do this one… It’s just a bit darker and it’s got quite a sad story, it’s very different.

What makes the play unique?

It has an opportunity to do lots of physical theatre, that’s what makes it unique. We’re really lucky in ISA, because we have an amazing facilities-department, who will make, and have already started making the set, so we have that. It’s also about using the actors, and being as creative as we can, so, for instance, we’ve got six people as the monster. I’m not sure yet how that is going to work, we’ve tried some things in rehearsals, so it’s very about, as a company, to kind of explore ideas and find the best solutions. I think it sets a very exciting challenge, the monster being the biggest challenge. I think the whole play, a lot of it, is really exciting physical theatre opportunities, which I am really interested to explore, and I think that the cast will really get a lot out of doing that as well.

How many things need to be considered when coordinating a play? What background work is involved that the viewer might not know of?

There is quite a lot. Obviously, it’s a lot of coordinating with lots of different people, so the facilities-team I’ve been coordinating with a lot recently about the set, and what the set’s gonna look like. There is basically going to be a massive tree, and they are building the tree up tomorrow on stage. Also, coordinating with booking the theatre, I have to check in with my Head of Department, Mrs Watson, regularly, checking in with the Head of Upper School, and you have to get the rights for the play, so you have to contact the publishers for the performance rights. I’m sure there’ll be other people I’ll be contacting nearer the time of the show, but currently the facilities and the security with rehearsals going on. We are rehearsing after school at the moment, but we will be rehearsing on a couple Saturdays, and then there’s evenings of the show.

What are you hoping to achieve with this play?

I want it to be as professional as we possibly can. I want the audience to be really moved by it, and I want all of the cast, we have a really great cast, to get as much out of it as they possibly can. And I want them to feel very proud of what they have achieved at the end, and I really want to be able to utilise the skills of all of the performers. For instance, there are some musicians and singers in the cast, and I want everyone to be able to showcase what they are capable of.

Why should people be a part of the high school play in the future?

I think it’s a great community-building event. I think that being part of a cast is really exciting, and it’s sort of like a big family. Everyone has a responsibility, and it’s not about me coming with all the answers, it’s about everyone working together to discover what the answers are together. I think that that ownership then creates a really tight community, and we go through it together. Obviously the night of the show, there is a lot of stress, but there is also the elation, and that first show is the most exciting thing ever.

When will the play take place?

The play will be on for three nights at the end of November, November 27th to November 29th.

What can the viewers expect from the experience of watching this play?

It’s quite dark and scary, so it’s not really for really young children. So I think that they will be surprised. It’s definitely going to be sad, and dealing with a very sensitive topic, but something that we all have to cope with, the death of a loved one, which is a really important issue. They should expect to be quite moved, they will be, and they should expect to see some really strong performances, because, even after just three weeks of rehearsals, I can tell that there are some really great actors in here, and I think that they are gonna do a really great job. I hope it’s gonna be like going to the real theatre, and this is a real theatre, because this is a beautiful space. 

The interview with Ms Shreeve foregrounds the beauty of theatre and the beauty of being a part of a play. We hope that the ISA Voice can contribute to an increasing attention of the high school play, as we want to encourage everyone, like Ms Shreeve said, to showcase what they are capable of.