Carmel High School senior Allison Miller wanted the challenge of putting together a play all by herself.
She originally wanted to stage “Life of Galileo,” but she said it was too big of a show for her to do at this time and the rights were too expensive.
Her father told her of a book he loved as a child called “Three Men in a Boat.” She looked for stage adaptations and there were several, but none were officially published.
“One of the playwrights, Mark Brownell, ended up letting me use a copy of the script for free, which was really nice,” she said.
A free performance is set for 7 p.m. April 12 at CHS Studio Theatre.
Miller said it is her project with support from theater department staff.
“I am the sole director from picking the play, to rehearsals and blocking, to arranging the performance,” Miller said. “This is a project I decided to do on my own outside of school hours.”
The three performers she chose are senior Vaishu Majji, sophomore Xander Brodnik and freshman Monroe Melton. Auditions were in January and rehearsals started in mid-February.
“It is about three best friends who are unwell and decide they need to take a trip,” Miller said. “They take a five-day float down the River Thames getting into all kinds of trouble.”
The 75-minute comedy is set in the 1800s in England.
Miller, who plans to major in genetics at Purdue University, has acted in one high school play a year since she was a sophomore. She performed in “Little Women” in February. She has been a student director for IndyFringe plays by CHS students the last two years and directed “Fire Exit” as part of the Studio One Acts.
