By Daisy Moriarty ’25
The Fall Play this year is Men on Boats by Jacklyn Backhaus, which is a comedy that explores complicated themes within the 1869 journey of John Wesley Powell and his crew. After rehearsing for nearly two months, the cast and crew of Men on Boats are in tech week, which is the final week before the show is performed.
The cast has been practicing using the boats, which are props used in about half the scenes in the play, when the crew is on the water. The boats were made by the student crew, along with set designer Al Chiappetta, who has been helping the cast by continuing to make adjustments to the boats, making them easier to use on stage. Audrey Richards plays John Wesley Powell, who lost one of his arms in the Civil War. She states that though handling the boat with only one arm has been difficult at times, “I think it still makes me feel powerful enough to be able to do what everyone else can do, even though I don’t have access to my arm.”
One of the main challenges that the cast faces during tech week is that they practice running the show with their costumes on, which they have not done before. Costume designer Terri Hawley, along with two student members of the Men on Boats crew, Kat Johnson and Polly Ross, have put together costumes for each character.
Tech week is about all the elements of the show that involve technology, such as sound, lighting, and projections. The Men on Boats crew is very involved in this, with Joshua Ly working on the lights, Nina Dai working on the projections, and Catherine Schroeder working on sound.
Men On Boats will be performed in TPACC on November 10th 11th, and 12th at 7pm. Each performance is open to the general public, as well as friends and family. In addition, freshmen and juniors will attend on Thursday the 10th, and sophomores and seniors will attend on Friday the 11th.
The Highlander 