Twice the Fun as Playmakers Take on Two Performances

The Watauga Theater department trophy case displaying plaques and awards from various performances over the years of the program. Photo credit: Merritt Powell

Merritt Powell, Staff Writer for The Powderhorn 

A wooden display case near the front of the school showcases roughly 50 plaques and awards. The most notable ones are glass diamonds, tinted blue with the label of State Champions. This program, having won NCTC three times out of the past eight years, has hopes to win again this year. It’s not a sport, nor a club. It’s the Watauga Playmakers. 

The North Carolina Theater Conference (NCTC) is the Playmaker’s competition where they get to show off what they have been working on throughout the fall semester and potentially compete for state championship titles. This year, instead of just one performance, they have decided to double their chances at winning and perform two. 

“There were two projects that I was just really attracted to,” said Watauga theater teacher Zachary Walker. “I feel like two is manageable and fun. It’s more expensive. Shout out to GearUp who’s actually paying for our registration. That’s very helpful.”

GearUp is a federal grant program that applies to certain schools in low income areas that promotes college and career readiness. They provide opportunities for schools to compete in competitions such as NCTC. 

“What really sets Playmakers aside from Theater 1, Theater 2, Theatre 3, is NCTC,” said Walker. “They have the luxury of competing against other high schools, other theater companies across the state, and they get to network with those kids.” 

NCTC takes place in late October and early November, so the actors, technicians, and stage managers have been working double-time to get the performances stage ready. 

“I get to organize all the sets and I get to make sure that people go on with their props at the right time,” said sophomore Michelle Spaulding, the stage manager. “I figure things out, and if something goes wrong then I get to help figure that out as well. I definitely could not do it without the other technicians and the actors.”

The two plays, though containing vastly different plots, have similar themes of finding love. With the addition of the extra play, the actors are having to balance the memorization of more lines and blocking. 

“You have to get both of your characters and figure out each of their backstories and motivations,” said Newmark. “One of the plays deals with love and the different stages of it, but the other is about love in a different way, finding love through your family.”

This year is the first time that Watauga will have two competitive shows, in part because of Gear Up. Also, for the first time, the class has been on a semester schedule, instead of an A/B schedule. 

“With an A/B schedule in the past some springs have felt kind of like wandering,” said Walker. “I like the semester class, because I get to see the Playmakers every single day and that continuity helps a lot during rehearsals.”

Following the retirement of long time theater teacher Sarah Miller, Walker became the sole theater teacher at Watauga. This is the first time the Theater Department hasn’t had two teachers in decades, and it has proven to be quite the change for the students and faculty in the department.

“There are definitely challenges being the only theater teacher, particularly since I was asked to come up here to work with Sarah Miller,” said Walker. “Now that she’s gone, it does feel awkward. It’s not bad, just different.”

The Theater Department has faced difficulties since Miller left, but they haven’t been deterred. Many of the students have found having two plays a more interesting challenge than just one, because it provides opportunities for them to expand as actors and stage managers. 

“Doing two plays has allowed me to do some research into two different time periods, because we’re doing some older shows where it’s been a while since they’ve been done,” said Newmark. “I think that the physicality of each show has been my favorite. My stage partner, Jovie Cornell and I have a lot of stage combat, and it’s been fun choreographing that.”

While doing two shows is new to Watauga, the talent and hard work put into them is not. The Playmaker class provides opportunities for people interested in a future in theater and acting and NCTC supplies a place for them to perform and win awards for their effort. 

“Mostly I’m just excited to be in Playmakers and being able to do what I enjoy,” said Spaulding. “And doing that twice is so much more fun.”