The freshman play Shipwrecked did not have a lead role. It did not have two, or even three, lead roles. Instead, each of the 24 actors cast in Shipwrecked starred as the main character, Louis de Rougemont.
Based on an historical figure, Shipwrecked follows the life of Rougemont, a Englishman who leaves London on a boat only to be stranded on an island for 30 years. He returns home and tells fantastical stories of his adventures.
Performing arts teacher Summer Williams, the play’s director, said that splitting up the role of Rougemont not only allowed each actor to play the lead, but also helped deliver the play’s message.
“The play deals with the truth and the answer,” said Williams. “You wonder whether or not the lead character actually had all these adventures. Having 24 different kids play the same character telling different pieces of a story adds to the mystery, ‘Is this fact or is this fiction?’ ”
According to Williams, each actor plays the role differently, which creates 24 different versions of the same character. The audience has to try to figure out which version is the most truthful.
“There are different pieces of you,” said Williams. “You with your friends, you with your family. They’re all split-offs of the same essence of you. I like playing with the idea that we all have one true self, but then we have many sides.”
Acting out these different sides came naturally to the cast, said freshman Debbie Liberman.
“Everybody plays the lead differently,” said Liberman. “Some people chose to say it in different voices. Some people use their normal voice. Some people chose to take the entire stage to move around and some people chose to move around in a small space.”
Williams said that the ensemble format of the play enabled the cast to pool together and showcase its various talents. For example, a gymnast could play Rougemont in a scene that called for acrobatics, and a singer could play Rougemont in a scene that called for song.
“There isn’t just one kid that everyone is focused on the entire time,” said Williams. “The audience has to train its eye to follow who the new Louis is, so it’s a little unconventional in that way. But it’s a great experience because all the kids get to play a different phase in Louis’ life.”
Freshman Kate Finnerty said that the experience of sharing the role made the cast members especially supportive of each other.
“There’s a little more pressure because everyone’s going to be making sure that you don’t mess up,” said Finnerty. “But it helped to come together over something and share ideas.”
Freshman Dawaun Hardy agreed.
“Splitting up the role means we share the responsibility,” Hardy said. “Not just one person has to carry that weight. We can be there for each other.”
This support was present both on and off the stage, according to Liberman.
“Having the same role brings it back to the idea that we’re all working together more,” said Liberman. “Whenever we’re not actually on stage, we run lines and work on projecting emotion. We take the roles of our peers seriously. We have to make sure everybody is getting their lines down and getting their feelings going.”
Although the actors agreed that their overall involvement with the play was memorable, each actor spoke differently about his or her personal experience.
In contrast to Finnerty, who said that the play was fun and awesome, Hardy spoke of the accountability that came with performing in the play.
“It takes a lot of responsibility because you have the main person, but you also have another part in the play to work on,” said Hardy. “It’s about responsibility and us owning up to do what we have to do.”
Liberman said that the format of the play offered a great opportunity to each actor.
“Everybody deserved to be the main character and everybody got to be the main character,” said Liberman. “I wouldn’t describe it as sharing it. It’s everybody having an individual opportunity to be the lead and proving themselves on stage.”
Pearl Choi can be contacted at [email protected].
