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High school drama
Local WHS students form drama club

<br>Patrick Whitehurst/WGCN<br>
Pictured from left to right, top to bottom, are drama club members Lindsay Torrez, Tyler High, Matthew Young, Jennifer Ruiz, Hattie Smith, Sierra Collins, Kimberley Crespo, Miranda Harris, Corrine Rock and Roy Rock. Not pictured are Daniel Young, Erin Macks, Aaron (AJ) Minor, Christopher Young and Danielle DeClarmont.

<br>Patrick Whitehurst/WGCN<br> Pictured from left to right, top to bottom, are drama club members Lindsay Torrez, Tyler High, Matthew Young, Jennifer Ruiz, Hattie Smith, Sierra Collins, Kimberley Crespo, Miranda Harris, Corrine Rock and Roy Rock. Not pictured are Daniel Young, Erin Macks, Aaron (AJ) Minor, Christopher Young and Danielle DeClarmont.

While many may think drama is an every day part of life in high school, that's not the case with Williams High School (WHS). There has been no drama there for nearly 30 years, according to WHS English teacher Sarah Wilson. Of course, this isn't your average run-of-the-mill drama; this is the acting kind, where the drama is played out on the stage for the entire world, or all of Williams, to see.

Students will do just that when the newly formed WHS drama club takes the stage for their first production in late February or early March, according to Wilson, who helms the club for the school. A firm date for the show has yet to be announced. Wilson said a high school drama club has not been offered at the school for nearly three decades.

"We're doing 'Beauty is a Beast.' It is a Cinderella story that is kind of Cinderella in reverse. The princess becomes a peasant, because she's such a horrible person," Wilson said. "This is the first year (drama's) been back, I think they said, in 30 years."

The group formed in August of 2008. "Beauty and the Beast," written by D. M. Bocaz-Larson, marks the company's first production. Wilson said the group formed after a number of individuals expressed an interest in developing the club.

"We got a bunch of people interested and it just kind of grew, very slowly, very steadily," Wilson added. As of February, there were roughly 15 members in the club: seven guys and eight girls, according to Wilson.

While the group will be working on sets in the coming weeks, Wilson said the actors are currently focusing on getting their lines memorized.

Matthew Young, a junior, said he got into the drama club because he said it sounded fun.

"I pretty much just stand around and look stoic. I play the guard," Young said. "Acting is something that I'm not very good at, so I figured if I joined the drama club, I can be perfect at everything."

WHS Sophomore Corrine Rock said she enjoys acting in the club,

"I can play a lot of people, but she (Wilson) likes having me play the weird people, because I'm good at that, like I'm the person that gets dragged screaming off stage. She normally has me play people that are more outspoken," Rock said, adding that she joined the club with a number of her friends.

"My friends all thought it would be cool, but they all dropped out and I didn't, because I still like it," Rock said.

Freshman Lindsay Torrez will play a fairy in the upcoming production.

"I get to do stop time, fast forward time," Torrez said, adding that she also gets a chance to hit the lead actress in the head during the production.

"I thought it would be cool to dress up and just act with other people," Torrez added.

Miranda "Randy" Harris, WHS freshman, will play Princess Beauty in the upcoming production.

"She is a spoiled rotten brat who gets what she deserves by her fairy godmother and she gets to be turned ugly. She learns her lessons and ends up being just like her sister, Honor, and gets to be nice," Harris said. "I actually love acting. In fact, when I go to college, I want to pursue acting as a minor."

She said she is not nervous about the upcoming performance, having performed in musicals and danced in the past.

"I'm kind of used to stage performances," Harris said.


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