During an inspirational part of the play, actor Aiden Barrett (11), who plays J. Finch performs his monologue. Barrett shared how “it feels like we have been practicing forever” in regards to how long Play Production has been rehearsing. He also mentioned that “Puffs has about 500 sound cues and 300 light cues,” which makes Tech Week all the more important to them.

Members of Play Production come together for a team cheer during an especially encouraging scene. Barrett expressed how there’s teamwork on and off the stage: “We all worked together to build this show. Everyone worked on making costumes and sets.”

Applying some final make-up and finishing touches, actress Morgan Kotecki (12) transforms herself into the role of Narrator in Puffs. She shared the backstory behind her costume: “The Narrator as a character was never specified as male or female and so my director, Ms. Orabuena, took my pantsuit I wore last year to prom because it was the perfect embodiment of Narrator.”

Through a scene rehearsal, Kotecki guides audience members through the play. This opening night of Puffs will be the first time in what feels like forever since Play Production has taken to the stage with a live audience. Kotecki expressed how she’s “most excited for the live applause, laughter and just being able to see everyone after the show.”

Enjoying a brief break in between setting adjustments, members of Play Production talk amongst themselves. Howard discussed how the “work ethic of everyone has been tremendously inspiring,” and that it has “taken everyone’s efforts to put this show together.”

Waiting for her cue, actress Angie Oakley (12), who plays Xavia Jones, gets into character backstage. The backstage energy is “quiet and excited” according to Barrett. He elaborated by saying, “everyone is ready to run on at any point and we’re all bursting with energy, but we have to keep quiet to not interrupt the show.”

Tech Week consists of long rehearsals lasting all day, continuous scene work and blocking, and costume run-throughs. Puffs’ Harry Potter, Samantha Johnson (9), expressed how Tech Week “gets a bit stressful and pretty chaotic sometimes but it’s overall a lot of fun.”

Actress Johnson takes a deep breath before making her on-stage entrance. Johnson is looking forward to “the laughter and hearing people laughing at the hilarious jokes in Puffs.”

Embracing, main leads Isabella DiStasio (11), who plays Megan Jones, Howard, and Keira White (12), who plays Wayne Hopkins, rehearse a sweet friend reunion scene. Being able to perform in front of all their friends and peers, according to Howard, “makes my experience in the theatre program so much better.”

With opening night right around the corner, that’s a wrap on Tech Week! Johnson is “really excited for people to come and watch [Puffs]!” Tickets are available for purchase on the ASB webstore or at the door. Showtimes are Thursday, November 18 @7pm, Friday, November 19 @7pm, and Saturday, November 20 @5pm. Don’t miss this incredible musical!