Drama

From its beginning, Trivium School has had a remarkable and enthusiastic drama program. In the early years, three plays were produced: first an L-Group play (9th and 10th grades), then a G-Group play (7th and 8th grades) and finally an R-Group play (11th and 12th grades). The repertoire covers a wide swath of Western literature. Shakespeare dominates, but there are many others: from Ancient Greece (Sophocles, Euripides), Italy (Gozzi, Goldoni), France (Moliere, Corneille), Spain, (Lope de Vega, Calderon de la Barca), England (Sheridan, Goldsmith, Shaw, Wilde, Milne, and Barrie) and America (O’Neill, Wilder). Many of the plays were edited for the audience. Mrs. Louise Schmitt was the director from 1979-1998. Leslie Cummings shared in directing and other tutors helped after Mrs. Schmitt retired. These include Michelle Scheurer, Joe Haggarty, Jana Draeger, David Muir, Amy Mitchell, Sue Walsh, Molly Smillie, Ingrid Mitchell, Clarke Mitchell, William Schmitt, Emily McBryan, Elizabeth Schroeder, Bridget Manssur. Michael Forrester, and Marie Kottenstette. The plays are listed by their academic years and order of production.

1979-1980       Midsummer’s Night Dream (excerpt about Pyramus and Thesbe); Saint Joan, Shaw (scenes); Antigone, Sophocles

1980-1981       Christmas Carol (from Dickens); The Monkey’s Paw, W.W. Jacobs; Spreading the News, Lady Gregory

1981-1982       The Devil and Daniel Webster (from Benet); Merchant of Venice (trial scene)

1982-1983       The Ransom of Red Chief (from O’Henry); Under the Oak (from Chaucer); Iphiginia in Aulis, Euripides

1983-1984       Edmund Campion (1 act); The Romancers, Rostand; Julius Caesar, Shakespeare

1984-1985       Christmas in the Market Place, Gheon; Passos de los Olivos; The Importance of Being Earnest, Wilde

1985-1986       The Libation Bearers, Aeschylus; Cheaper by the Dozen; Go Back for Murder, A. Christie

1986-1987       What Ho, Jeeves!, Wodehouse; Apollo of Bellac, Giraudeux; She Stoops to Conquer, Goldsmith

1987-1988       Nicholas Nickleby, (from Dickens); Game of Chess (?); Pygmalion, Shaw

1988-1989       The Man who Married a Dumb Wife, (France); Arsenic and Old Lace; The Two Orphans

1989-1990       Tom Sawyer and The Million Pound Note; Little Women, (from Alcott); Princess Ida, Gilbert and Sullivan

1990-1991       Christmas Carol; Edmund Campion; Much Ado About Nothing, Shakespeare

1991-1992       Shall We Join the Ladies; The Romancers, Rostand; Virtue is Her Own Reward and Doctor in Spite of Himself, Moliere

1992-1993       Halfway to Concord; Fuente Oreuna, Lope de Vega; The Taming of the Shrew, Shakespeare

1993-1994       Four short plays written by students; Missing Masterpiece; The Madwoman of Chaillot

1994-1995       Four short plays by students (Change of Heart, Sherlock Holmes, the Lion, Witch and                              Wardrobe); Spreading the News, Lady Gregory; Merchant of Venice, Shakespeare

1995-1996       Five short plays by students; The Ugly Duckling, A.A. Milne, and Little Women, from Alcott; HMS Pinnafore, Gilbert and Sullivan

1996-1997       Short plays by students (It Was Bitter Cold, My Inheritance, Marriage is Bliss); Beauty is Fled; Loves’ Labors Lost, Shakespeare

1997-1998       The Devil and Daniel Webster, (from Benet); Love of One’s Neighbor, Andregev; JB

1998-1999       Four Short Plays Written by Students; Midsummer’s Night Dream, Shakespeare

1999-2000       Four Original One Act Plays by students; The Masque of the Two Strangers; Leave it to Psmith, Whodehouse

2000-2001       The Precious Damsels and The Fan, Moliere; Comedy of Errors, Shakespeare; Cyrano de Bergerac, Rostand

2001-2002       The King’s Stag, Grossi; Sir Gawain and the Green Knight; As You Like It, Shakespeare

2002-2003       Alcestiad and The Drunken Sisters, Wilder; Servant of Two Masters, Goldoni; Winter’s Tale, Shakespeare

2003-2004       Scenes from Antigone, Merchant of Venice, Pygmalion, The Importance of Being Earnest; The Great Theatre of the World, Calderon de la Barca; The Mikado, Gilbert and Sullivan

2004-2005       Scapin and The Would-Be Gentleman, Moliere; The Devil and Daniel Webster and The Ugly Duckling; She Stoops to Conquer, Goldsmith

2005-2006       I Remember Mama, Druten; The 6th Juror and Sorry Wrong Number; Creon Monarchus, J. Schmitt and G. Phillips, (11th grade); Twelfth Night, Shakespeare, (12th grade)

2006-2007       Arsenic and Old Lace, Kesselring; Make Believe, A.A. Milne; Trial by Jury, Gilbert and Sullivan, and Scenes from Shakespeare (11th grade); The Ideal Husband, Wilde (12th  grade)

2007-2008       The Artful Widow, Goldoni. Comedy of Errors; You the Jury and Quiet Please; The Learned Ladies, Moliere (12th grade)

2008-2009       Comedy of Errors, Shakespeare; The Scarlet Pimpernel

2009-2010       The King’s Stag, Gozzi; Peter Pan Barrie; The Matchmaker, Wilder; The Rivals, Sheridan

2010-2011       The Monkey’s Paw and other short plays; Toad of Toad Hall, A.A. Milne; The Pirates of Penzance, Gilbert and Sullivan

2011-2012       Short plays; The Princess and the Goblin, from MacDonald; Pygmalion, Shaw; As You Like It, Shakespeare

2012-2013       Group of short plays; Tom Sawyer, from Twain; The Comic Illusion, Corneille; Admirable Crighton

2013-2014       Comedy of Errors Shakespeare; Romeo and Juliet Shakespeare, Midsummer’s Night Dream Shakespeare; 15 Minute Hamlet abridged by Tom Stoppard; Much Ado about Nothing Shakespeare

2014-2015       Make Believe Milne; The Doctor in Spite of Himself, Spreading the News, Hyacinth Halvey Lady Gregory; Shall We Join the Ladies Barrie; Ten Little Indians Christie

2015-2016       The Angel That Troubled the Waters and 6 short plays of Wilder; Johnny Tremain; A Damsel in Distress, Wodehouse

2016-2017       Scapin, Moliere; You Can’t Take It with You, Kaufman and Hart

2017-2018       Henry V, Shakespeare; Busman’s Honeymoon, Sayers

2018-2019 The Comic Illusion, Corneille; Leave It to Psmith, Wodehouse

2019-2020       Princess Bride; Babette’s Feast              

2020-2021      The Scarlet Pimpernel

2021-2022       Prince Caspian; The Precious Damsels, Moliere, The Flying Doctor, Moliere; Hamlet, Shakespeare; Pride and Prejudice