Every year Glen Rock High School puts on numerous productions through our theater company. The last hit, Little Shop of Horrors, was nominated for a Metro Award for costumes and set design in the 2022-23 school year. This year, the first play of the season is Fairycakes, a wonderful rendition that brings many storybook characters together in an enchanting comedy.
Christopher Barker has been directing plays and musicals at Glen Rock since 2013, his works include Drowsy Chaperone, Little Shop of Horrors, and Legally Blonde. Fairycakes is the opening production put on by the theater company this year. It’s the first time incoming freshmen and those who hadn’t participated in prior years get to experience being in a high school play.
“I was a little nervous coming in,” freshman Elektra Skordilis said. “But once I got to know everyone, I trusted Mr. Barker and them to guide me through.” Other first years had similar responses, stating that it was an overall fun experience and they would be participating in the winter musical.
Fairycakes is a very large and “mystical” production that has not been seen at Glen Rock in recent years. The pressure was on to be able to execute the play and make it look and feel as real as possible. Aside from good acting, a lot of different elements go into producing a play such as costumes, props, and the technology behind it all. Students apart of the theater company are given the responsibility of executing these different departments.
This year, senior Abbie Auxter is acting head, Giulia Beaudoin is overseeing the crew and Hima Badarvada is head of tech along with junior Lara Hernandez. Margi Nolfo and Meral San are in charge of hair and makeup, and sophomore Lily Bell is responsible for costumes.
“When I first heard about the play I was really excited because just from pictures it looked so fun and whimsical,” Bell gushed. “It did become a little hard to put together exactly what I wanted but it worked out very nicely especially paired with the hair and makeup.” The hair and makeup department had similar remarks stating that the costumes put together with their designs made for “very dreamy” looks.
The show ran from Thursday, November 16th to Saturday, November 18th. It was a great production that received a lot of viewer turnout. Roseline Laguerre, a seniored Glenrockian, raved about it, “It was one of the best plays I’ve seen here at Glen Rock.”
