The Lake Today

“I can govern my country or I can govern Alice.”

Teddy Roosevelt gave these words in a response to a dignitary who asked if he could better control his daughter. They are also words from the great U.S. president used in student Ethan’s valedictorian graduation speech – ones he never truly got to relay before he passed away in the one-act play, “Governing Alice.”

School of the Osage junior Teddi Moorman plays Alice, Ethan’s younger sister, who through her subjectively rebellious actions showcases both sides of her late brother’s good and bad qualities. For Moorman, the president’s real words – the same used in the play – are her favorite. Those words truly illustrate the full meaning behind the play’s premise and how it got it’s name.

“I like that I am the only one in the play remembering Ethan and showing them that there is more than what each of the them are seeing him to be,” Moorman explained. “I like that it is quirky; we have the Geek chorus and they are weird (said with a laugh). But, it also shows the audience to see and understand people deeper than just what’s on the surface.”

The Lake Area community will be able to see the one-act play “Governing Alice” along with the comedic one-act production, “Hard Candy,” at 7 p.m. on Thursday and Friday at the Cummings Auditorium at Osage High School. With both plays set in modern times and lots of current time spent in rehearsing them to perfection, the Osage’s drama department is excited to select a different production to deliver to the community.

Setting the stage

Twenty-two Osage High School students have worked diligently between their many other academic and extracurricular activities to “set the stage” for the upcoming One Act Plays production before opening tonight tomorrow evening.

However, for OHS Speech, Theater and Forensics teacher Carly Breaux, being on the lookout for intriguing, educational and highly entertaining performances her students can put on is something she is continually searching for.

“I believe theater teachers are always on the lookout for what they will perform next. I know I've personally begun working on building my personal library of plays,” she said. “We try to read as many plays as possible to have some in mind for the students that we might have or the audience we would want to watch.”

Breaux said she chose to do two one-act plays instead of a full-length production because of the forensics team.

“Forensics is the competitive speech team. They travel to different schools and compete in different events,” she said. “This semester we have their district and state tournament, and because it takes less time to work with one-act plays, I would be able to devote more time to working with those students. We will also take ‘Governing Alice’ as a competitive one-act piece to our District tournament in March.” 


Breaux said "Governing Alice" was chosen because of a few reasons. The first is because she wanted a contrasting piece to do after “Hard Candy” and a drama for our competition.

“‘Governing Alice’ is based on Sophocles' ‘Antigone,’ which is a show I've always loved. It provokes the audience to think about the situation, and decide on their own what they believe to be right or wrong,” she said. “Alice takes this classic story and puts it into modern days. It is a good learning experience for the students not only because it still provokes these questions, but also it helps them be able to understand the classics a little better.” 



As for introducing Jonathon Rand’s short comedy, “Hard Candy,” to the two play production this weekend, Breaux said her first reasons for selecting it was because it was a funny show with the possibility of a large cast.

“I knew the amount of students who would be potentially auditioning, and I wanted to give them all a chance to be in the production. I knew it was a show we could have fun with and the audience would enjoy watching,” she added.

Rehearsing the scene

In both one-act plays, the students have felt they can connect or have fun with real-life situations and different characters.

For sophomore Anthony Doyle, one of the reasons he has enjoyed playing the storeowner in “Governing Alice” is he gets to do a monologue.

“I have never got to try doing one before and always wanted to; I never got the chance, and now I have that chance,” he said, who has played multiple characters in a local community theatre production of “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” and his first OHS stage role in Charlotte’s Web.

Freshman Mary McGowan, who plays Alice’s little sister, Izzy, in “Governing Alice,” said her character allows to portray the sibling who doesn’t know how to feel about the information about her brother after he has passed.

“In one scene with Alice, I bring up about how do I still love him if he did that (not revealing too much for audiences); she really doesn’t know what to do and shows vulnerability,” she said, who landed her first acting role in “Governing Alice” and previously helped backstage in a past production.

For seasoned Osage thespian Caleb Franz, he was excited to get some versatility in his repertoire in playing the “bad guy.” Cast as one of the lead characters, the principal, he is constantly second-guessing and disciplining Alice for her decisions in remembering her brother the way she does.

“In all the previous plays, I have always played the good guy. In this play, (the principal) is more of the person trying to stop things and be the bad guy. I always wanted to play a character like that and now is my chance,” he said.

In regards to performing in a one-act play versus a full-length production, Franz has enjoyed not only the shorter practices but also the opportunity to take his character and the play to new academic heights for the school.

“The full-length play is a longer process and “Governing Alice” is going to districts; if we get second place or higher we go to state. Hopefully we will,” he said. “We went to state one time before with a one-act; it was pretty fun.”

Moorman is another seasoned actress in larger roles on the Osage stage playing Wilbur in “Charlotte’s Web” and Red Riding Hood in “Happily Ever After, Once Upon a Time.” For her, she also enjoyed playing a character that had more of a bad side to her.

“I also like that Alice is a bit of a rebel; I haven’t really played bad person and it was neat to play someone completely different than how I am in real life,” she added.

In “Hard Candy,” Danielle Komo plays receptionist Linda who watches a variety of people being interviewed by a company and getting hired, hoping to also get hired herself. She enjoyed the physical aspects of the acting and comic antics that she was able to portray with her role in the one-act comedy.

“I like the actions I have to do up there. I’m supposed to keep the play going and the physical stuff makes it really funny,” she added.

Raising the curtain

Breaux said the audiences are sure to enjoy both one-act performances. With “Hard Candy,” she said they will like it because it is an over-exaggerated comedy about real life situations.

“We have all had many job interviews, and most of us have experienced rejection,” she said. “I believe this is what we would imagine the company to be like that rejected us; full of people who were hired for outlandish reasons, because obviously they aren't hiring the right people for the job.”

As for
"Governing Alice," Breaux said it tells a different story for different members of the audience.

“One of my cast members told me she wanted to be a part of the show, because she has experienced what it is like to have a family member turn out to be a completely different person than she originally thought,” she said. “She related to Alice, and her struggle to find out who her brother truly is. Others might be able to see the story from the principal's point of view; betrayed and left to pick up the pieces left by one of his top students.”

“I think that is what is great about "Alice," it is open to interpretation,” she added.

As echoed by the Geek Leader, sophomore Michael Minnehan, in “Governing Alice,” the play teaches people about understanding and to see both sides of a situation and the true person within. His character in fact gives comic relief to the drama, yet Minnehan’s words resonate with a simple message this play delivers as a whole.

“‘Alice’ teaches you, you should not condemn someone because of one side or another; it teaches you that there is always two sides to every coin,” he said.

Breaux said in both comedy and drama, both one-act plays will deliver an entertaining and educational evening for all who attend.

“My kids have worked very hard on these two productions, and I am excited to share it with an audience,” she said.

Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and tickets will be available at the door for $3 each.

For more information, call the school at 573-348-0115.