Solon Seniors Run the Show During One-Acts

"You better be as big as your hair!" Melissa Cartellone shouted up at Margaret Kennedy, an actress playing an eccentric woman named Gina trying to hypnotize her way to a job at a company with lax hiring standards.

It's dress rehearsal, the night before the curtain rises, and Cartellone and her directoral partner, Allison Burko, watched intently as Kennedy and Zach McCulley played out a scene in Hard Candy, one of four one-act plays directed and designed by Solon High School seniors.

The plays, an annual tradition at Solon, will open this evening at 7 p.m. at Solon High's auditorium. The one-acts will also play Friday and Saturday night at 7 p.m. at the Solon Center for the Arts.

All tickets are $5 at the door. 

Each of the plays is directed and managed by seniors, who select their own actors, design the stage and costumes, said Kristina Ferencie, the drama club adviser.

"Really, I just let them run it," she said. "It's really all about them making their mistakes and learning from them."

Ferencie said it's also an excellent opportunity for the underclassmen, who get a chance to get performance experience and learn from the seniors.

"It's a great opportunity for everybody," Ferencie said.

Money from ticket sales will support the drama club, but the students also plan to donate money to help out the Oddfellows Playhouse Youth Theatre in Connecticut, which lost its costumes and props when the roof of their storage building collapsed during the recent ice storms. 

"It's always great when students can reach out to help others, especially other students," Ferencie said.

Below is a brief synopsis of each play, all light-hearted comedies perfect for high school students, Ferencie said.

Also attached to this article is the program, which includes cast and credits for each production.

Danny Brillo: Danny Brillo is a high school detective who, unbeknownst to the school administration, operates out of a janitor's closet. When a term paper goes missing, it means the valedictorian could lose her rank – and it's up to Danny to get to the bottom of things. His investigation exposes the high school's hidden underbelly, including the secretive campus candy racket, the vicious contenders for the valedictorian spot, and the tabloid-like school paper. It's a high school underground world that few know exists ... because maybe it doesn't.

Square One: Darren Dormer, the coolest senior in high school, wakes up horrified to find that he's once again a freshman. Or was he just dreaming about being a senior all along? Darren's used to having popularity and adoration handed to him on a silver platter, but he now has to wrestle with reality, identity, and trying to make it onto the Homecoming Court...

Achadamee Awards: Welcome to the first annual Achadamee High awards show recognizing the "finest" moments of the past year – from best will-you-be-mine moment to best proposal for a new mascot. Join this year's crowd-shy host as she gets a little (unwanted) help from offstage, as well as a range of presenters including the Prom King and Queen. Featuring music from the Achadamee High Band, this awards show illustrates one fact: Achadamee High should win top honors as the quirkiest, most dysfunctional, and downright hilarious school in the nation!

Hard Candy: Job applicants at Banff Enterprises will do anything to claw their way up the corporate ladder. In a fast-paced series of hilarious interviews, the new recruits try every trick in the book – from bribery, nepotism, and the Old Boy Network to blackmail, seduction, and mind control.