MFHS theatre students to tackle serious issues in 'After the Fall'
Emily Hilley-Sierzchula/The Highlander. MFHS senior Holden Fox, as Quentin, meets people from his haunted past during rehearsal for Arthur Miller's 'After the Fall.' Fox said Quentin is the most challenging role he has ever played.
By Emily Hilley-Sierzchula
Theater students, on both technical and thespian sides, are used to challenges; in addition to keeping theater fun, challenges can mean greater rewards.
Marble Falls High School (MFHS) theater teacher Jon Clark knew any Arthur Miller drama would be a good learning experience for students.
"It's been challenging from an acting standpoint, and from the technical side, so it's been really intense in a short amount of time,” Clark said. “I hope what we’re doing is something pretty cool and good theater."
Students will perform "After the Fall" at the University Interscholastic League (UIL) contest in Cedar Park on Thursday, March 24.
Locally, the play's run at the MFHS Auditorium for the community will be determined after UIL is over for the year. (“It could be March or May,” Clark said.)
Clark did not expect his students to pick "After the Fall": a play known as Miller's most surreal, heavy and controversial (especially to Marilyn Monroe fans who bristle at the portrayal of the second wife in the semi-autobiographical drama.)
Students read one of Miller's traditional, linear, dramas, contrasted with "After the Fall," a “memory play” with time-swerving ways. The audience meets Quentin’s second wife, then first wife, before meeting his fiancé, Holga.
“They chose the more challenging play, the one that is not the safe bet,” Clark said. Taking place in Quentin’s mind, the play wrestles with heady issues like failed marriage, suicide and the Holocaust.
Clark said even Elia Kazan, who directed the play on Broadway and was a friend of Miller, didn’t entirely understand "After the Fall."
“Quentin is speaking to someone in the audience, but Miller never says if that person is a therapist, his former or future self, his daughter or maybe God?" Clark said. “It’s been a challenge to fill in those blanks, but these kids have done a really good job."
Lead actor Holden Fox, a senior, said Quentin is the most challenging role he's ever played.
For more on this story, see The Highlander on Tuesday, March 15.
