E. Fidler, Rowan Tait, and Brian Newmark act in "Surge" as a family of Christmas tree farmers who face difficulties due to Hurricane Helene. Photo Credit: Charlie Stumb, Watauga Yearbook
Lou Neal and Charli Johnson, members of The Spark
On September 27th, Hurricane Helene swept through the Southeastern United States, unexpectedly devastating rural communities throughout Appalachia. In the weeks following, Watauga County worked to rebuild and recover from the devastation wrought by Helene. During the period in which school was out of session, the members of Pioneer Playmakers, a high-performance theater group led by Sarah Miller and Zachary Walker, began to prepare their production for the annual North Carolina Theater Conference.
The original piece, titled “Surge,” lasted roughly 45 minutes in total and demonstrated the impacts of Hurricane Helene in a uniquely artistic way. Consisting of 3 parallel storylines inspired by anecdotes from Buncombe and Watauga county communities, the play mixed plot scenes with pauses in which cast members shared statistics from the storm and included an original song written and performed by cast members. This flow allowed for a combination of vital context and heart-touching storytelling to shine throughout the play.
Every year, Watauga Playmakers push their limits in creating a performance for NCTC, and the choice to portray the storm tasked the group with an even bigger challenge. Hurricane Helene impacted everyone in the Watauga community in some way, and Playmaker members were tasked with working overtime to create a realistic portrayal of these experiences.
“During Hurricane Helene, I witnessed the devastation that impacted so many of my neighbors and friends. These people lost everything from cars to homes, yet they all expressed how lucky they felt to be safe," said first-year Playmaker and soundboard operator Hannah Sheffey. "While producing ‘Surge’ I wanted to emphasize how material things lost their value when the safety of loved ones was at risk."
The writing process for “Surge” allowed for a collaborative process that was both ignited and hurried due to the time limit imposed by the hurricane.
“Because we decided to go with a more minimalistic set for ‘Surge,’ it was difficult to portray the hurricane's destruction," said Sheffey. "Instead of heavily relying on our set to show this we relied on the actors to truly appear as if they were witnessing the destruction."
While Playmakers usually spend far more time crafting their compeition pieces, the actors had to move forward with less than a month of writing and rehearsal.
“In a perfect world, it would have been awesome to have more time to work on the show for longer. But we didn't and we knew this show had to be shared so we worked as hard as we possibly could,” said Rowan Tait, a senior at Watauga High School and second-year Playmaker. “But I don't think it was difficult, it just took conversation and time.”
Overall, the members of Pioneer Playmakers reflect on the production of “Surge” as a positive experience that allowed for growth and collaboration.
“This is my first year being a Playmaker, and my experience has been amazing so far. I have had previous classes with a lot of the ensemble members prior to Playmakers, so it has been really fun to share this experience with some of my dearest friends,” said first-year Playmaker Chloe Greer. “I think ‘Surge’ definitely tugged at the heartstrings of everyone at NCTC. Especially the people who were in the hurricane, or that had family and friends that experienced the tragedy.”
The impactful story of loss, resilience, and community shown in “Surge” touched the hearts of both those in the production and in the audience. The hard work and dedication of Watauga’s Pioneer Playmakers culminated in recognition at NCTC and landed the group a spot once again at the state’s Theater Conference.
“I think that in many ways art is used in the real world to help us overcome hardship,” said Tait. “I'm so thankful that this ensemble and our incredible directors decided to put love and care into the work, each and every moment of the show, and each other when we needed it.”
To watch the show online, you can follow this link.
Playmakers will produce an encore performance at the high school on November 18.
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