“Human connection is desperately needed right now,” said York Drama Director Rebecca Marianetti. “We are all trying to find a way to keep relationships alive; the connections between people can never be underestimated, especially as we seek to strengthen ourselves and our community.”
Drama Director John Forsythe agrees.
“Lift with Love is not only our season theme for York Drama this year, but one that we are striving to bring into Elmhurst as a whole,” he said. “We need to actively support and lift each other as we navigate 2020 and beyond; this is incredibly important right now.”
The Season has started with an outreach to the community of Elmhurst, with drama students distributing 1,000 cards with “Lift With Love” throughout the community and a special message from the drama board on the back of each postcard.
A senior at York shared on her postcard: “Last year, our theme of empathy brought us to new heights as a cast, club, school, and community. This year, a year filled with new challenges, poses new opportunities. York Drama will bring stories of perseverance and strength to unite our community in a period of hardship.”
“Though theatre may not look the same for a while, we will still find a way to create,” said Marianetti. “This fall, we are thrilled to share ‘Almost, Maine’ as our fall play, directed by John Forsythe with creative, incredible student directors for each scene. This beautiful show will be filmed, with permission, and live streamed October 22, 23, 24 and 25 at 7:30 p.m.”
She went on to tell more about the production
“’Almost, Maine’ is a place that’s so far north, it’s almost not in the United States. And it’s not quite a town, because its residents never got around to getting organized. So it almost doesn’t exist. They do reach out for connections though, just like we are doing right now. In this time of the pandemic, there is nothing we need more than human connection. York High School’s production of John Cariani’s ‘Almost, Maine’ is set in the present moment, performed completely in mask and with enforced social distancing.
“This makes human connection that much more difficult. On this cold, clear, winter night, as the northern lights hover in the star-filled sky above, the residents of Almost, Maine, grapple with that obstacle and find themselves falling in and out of love in unexpected and hilarious ways. Knees are bruised. Hearts are broken. But the bruises heal, and hearts mend as those connections are forged — almost.”
“Let the season begin,” said Forsythe.
Tickets for October 22 – 25 will be available via on-line box office at YCHSDRAMABOXOFFICE.com. These will be tickets for a live stream performance and purchasers will receive a link an hour before scheduled event.
