- May 5, 2024
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With each production since drama teacher Amy McKay took over Matanzas High School theater department, the bar is being set higher.
The fall production of “The Three Musketeers” is raising that standard again through a partnership with multimedia art company House of Hen.
“This is a show of epic proportions, including a very large set with a second-story balcony, 40 kids performing a swash-buckling adventure filled with sword fights (yes, with actual swords), tons of stage combat and time-period costuming,” said Jenica “Hen” Frederickson, owner of House of Hen.
The partnership formed when Frederickson’s daughter was placed in McKay’s class this fall.
Frederickson had a vision and a business plan to partner with the student-actors and bring and incorporate drama therapy into the program, and McKay was more than willing.
“The kids — they don’t just like to act, they also use it as an outlet to deal and process,” Frederickson said. “There’s a lot of healing.”
“The Three Musketeers” made its way to the Matanzas stage this fall partly because McKay wanted her students to have a say in what they performed.
“Last year, at the end of year, students reviewed scripts, because I wanted them to be personally invested in what they chose,” McKay said.
With a play that has so many script variations, McKay settled on the script written by Ken Ludwig. The adaptation is based on the version written by playwright Alexandre Dumas, but it also includes an additional female lead.
The show is different than what the school has done in the past, but McKay said the choreography during the sword fights is one way of preparing for school’s ambitious spring musical, “Footloose.”
In addition to acting, with Frederickson’s assistance, students also have learned to build a set, paint a set for a 3-D feel, research time periods and sew.
“It’s a professional standard that we’re holding them to,” Frederickson said. “We worked really hard to say, ‘This is what goes in to a pro show.’”
Curtains will rise 7 p.m. Nov. 8, 14 and 15; and 3:30 p.m. Nov. 9. Tickets are $8 for individuals, $5 for students with ID and free for Flagler County Public Schools employees.
During each show, a silent auction will be held to raise money for the program.
