For a show about old people, Waiting in the Wings sure felt young and lively in its nature. The play was so rejuvenating; the students honed in their acting abilities and were unbelievably brilliant.
Each character had niches and unique movements that were their own, and that was what made the production so special.
Waiting in the Wings is a play by Noel Coward and was directed by theatre director Donna Walker – it was her first upper school play of the year.
The story takes place in a retirement home for out-of-work actresses and tells the story of a feudal relationship between two of the actresses, Lotta Bainbridge (Simi Singh ’14) and May Davenport (Karsen Green ’15), who once loved the same man.
Walker is known to take her plays very seriously, which is always evident because of their high production value, and she certainly delivered with Waiting in the Wings.
She used a very unique technique with creating the many different characters.
“Most of our characters didn’t have written background stories, so we all had this assignment to answer a list of character analysis questions our director gave us,” Sophomore Maddie Walker said. “There was one rehearsal we all just went around sharing our answers. It definitely gave us a closer attachment to our characters.”
This technique added depth and life to the characters. The better the actor understands the character, the better the audience will.
Junior Karsen Green took this technique very seriously, and it was no doubt evident. Her character was unbelievably fabulous.
“The character I created for May Davenport was this: She grew up in northern London around 1885. Her father had always been the one to push her to achieve her dreams, which is why she pursued her love for theatre early on. When she lost her father in WWI, it crushed her,” said Green. “She continues to follow her father’s words and went into professional theatre.”
When constructing a production, the hardest part for the actor is to create a believable and interesting character, which was accomplished by every actor in Waiting in the Wings.
Beyond the beautiful acting, the set was well constructed and definitely represented the living room of a retirement home.
The show took a lot of work, but it certainly paid off.
“Everyone’s either nice or funny (sometimes both) so coming to a hardworking rehearsal wasn’t too bad,” said Junior Thomas Kilger.
The show was also Seniors Simi Singh and Lexie Garcia’s last show at the school.
“It was so special to be apart of [their] last show at Trinity. It was really incredible watching them take their last bows on the Trinity stage, and I feel privileged to have worked with them in their last show here,” Walker said.
Singh and Garcia had two of the most memorable characters in the show; Singh was the recipient of the annual Gyspy Robe.
“Although it was sad taking my last bow, I’m glad I ended it on such high note,” Singh said.
The Gypsy Robe is given to the hardest working actor in the show. Singh no doubt deserved it with her eloquent characterization of Lotta Bainbridge
The actors, director, and the script itself were phenomenal. Waiting in the Wings was such a great way for Walker to end her theatre season.
