LIFE IN A SITCOM: Eden production brings the script to life
It’s you, isn’t it?
What if your life was a sitcom and you didn’t know it? Find out in Eden High School’s production “Stick to the Script.”
What started out as an assignment for writer’s craft class slowly turned into a comedic one-act play. “Stick to the Script,” written and directed by Ava McVittie, is a play centred around Jay as he becomes more aware his life is a ’90s sitcom. The show takes place in Jay’s apartment he shares with his friends, Chase and Penelope.
The play may be lesser known, but was received very well at the National Theatre School of Canada awards.
The cast and crew of 14 were able to produce a cohesive and immersive show. The cast had great energy and it was easy to see their passion for theatre, as many students served as both cast and crew members.
Anchored by effective lighting and sound that changed as the plot grew more tense, the inventive concept came together. The small stage at Eden was especially well suited for this play, as it gave the feel of a live studio audience, in keeping with the sitcom theme.
Throughout the performance, the actors sold the comedy of the sitcom, though some lines did not land as intended.
Owen Culp portrayed Jay with great energy, emotion and expres- sion. Culp delivered his lines with passion, and his effective use of body language showed the progres- sion of his character from being mostly fine to slightly hysterical. His interaction with the audience at the end was key in breaking the fourth wall of theatre and making the audience complicit in the ending of the show.
Taylor Morency gave a funny, memorable and outstanding performance as Chase. Morency’s ability to switch from Chase to the actor playing Chase made the audience buy into the fact it is a sitcom. The way Morency was able to reset and redeliver lines when there was a retake told the story that much more effectively. Morency’s use of body language and humour is what truly made the show by turns hilarious and tragic.
Praiseworthy aspects of the technical performance included lights and sound. Lighting by Theo Fletcher and Owen Culp tied the performance together. The cues were hit every time, especially for blackouts showing a scene change or reset. Blue lights showed when the cameras were no longer rolling and red lights when the fourth wall was being broken. The sound, by Kat Weberbauer and Hailey Jaques, brought the sitcom to life with laugh tracks, booing and voiceovers.
With an inventive premise and a committed cast and crew, “Stick to the Script” was an inviting, fun and creative production.