From October 12-15, Cathedral Prep and Villa Maria performed To Kill A Mockingbird on the VMA stage. It was the first show of the theatre season and will definitely be one to remember. With a very small cast and a disappointingly low attendance for the shows, this production overcame some odds to still convey the strong, inspirational, famous message that was carried out by both the original film and novel.
For those who are unfamiliar, the story is an American classic. It takes place in a small, Southern city in Alabama during the 1930’s. Racism is conveyed prominently throughout the show as revered lawyer, Atticus Finch, is appointed to defend a black man facing rape charges by a local white woman. Atticus consistently stands up for what is right throughout the story and tries teaching that to his children, Scout and Jem. Folks around town call the family a “disgrace” and become ornery and even violent towards them. The children don’t understand, but Atticus strongly encourages them to ignore all the commotion and move on with life.
During the trial, Atticus argues clearly and evidently, that the alleged victim (Mayella Ewell) was beaten by her father (Bob Ewell), not Tom Robinson, the accused. He repeatedly points out that the right side of her face was beaten, so it would have to have been someone who was left-handed. Tom’s left hand was severely damaged as a boy and lost all nerve senses and muscle usage in his left hand. However, Bob is left handed and Atticus insists it was him during one of his well documented drinking incidents. Despite being unquestionably innocent, Tom is found guilty and is sent to prison.
After being made a fool of in court, Bob drunkenly attacks the Finch children one night. Suddenly, the kids are saved by an unknown man. That unknown mad turned out to be Boo Radley, the neighbor who never left his home and that all the children would make rumors of being a monster. Atticus teaches his children the valuable lesson of not to judge anyone without being empathetic and putting yourself in their position first.
This show starred Alex Welz as Atticus Finch, Stella Przyblinski as Scout, Brian Lee as Jem, Audrey Hersch as Mayella Ewell, Howard Lang as Bob Ewell, and Elijah Lyons as Tom Robinson. The production was directed by Father Mike DeMartinis once again. Freshman, Xavier Campbell, spoke on his experience saying, “My first Prep-Villa show was so much fun. I met lots of new people and made many friends.”
The next show will be Peter And The Starcatcher debuting Thursday, November 2-5. Get to the show and check out what Prep-Villa theatre is all about!