Carmel High School theater teacher Jim Peterson chose a play with flexibility amid a global pandemic.
CHS will present “Radio Mystery Theatre” Nov. 12-14 at the school’s auditorium.
”When I started the production, I wasn’t sure that we would still be in school, and we still play it day by day watching the news and paying close attention of the CDC guidelines,” Peterson said. “The advantage to this production is that we can perform the script live in front of an audience, or we perform over Zoom or broadcast it online, or we can even perform the scripts over the radio.
“It was imperative that we have this flexibility in case we had to make adjustments due to the pandemic.”
The other advantage is the performance style lends itself to social distancing, Peterson said. There are two microphones the actors use to deliver their lines. The cast is socially distanced throughout most of the performance. The actors also will wear face masks throughout the production.
Peterson said there will be 150 tickets sold and will be grouped by families to maintain social distance. The auditorium’s capacity is 2,000.
The play is a behind-the-scenes look at a radio broadcast in 1945.
“I am so grateful that I am able to work on my art and perform during this crazy time,” senior Jack Ducat said. “By doing a radio play, the cast and I can still tell fascinating stories to a live audience while also taking the necessary safety measures in a way that doesn’t hinder the storytelling.”
Because Peterson divided the students into two groups, the show has two radio plays with two separate cast and one frame story, which involves people from both groups.
“The frame story is about some of the craziness that happens to the actors before, during and after the show,” Ducat said. “In both acts, I appear in the frame story as the director Allen Burns.”
Tickets are available online at ticketracker.com/store/events/279. There will be livestream tickets through the service, but details aren’t set.
Performances are at 7 p.m. Nov. 12-14 with an added 2 p.m. show Nov. 14.
