Region 1 SDA Festival: Day 1

Earlier this evening, the Region 1 Saskatchewan Drama Association one-act play festival started off with a bang, with two laugh-out-loud comedies. Let's get started!

HOW TO KISS A GIRL by Wade Bradford - Oxbow Prairie Horizons School - Student director Mackenzie Warriner did a nice job keeping this very funny show moving along at a steady pace. It was quick without feeling rushed, nicely acted, and featured a truly wonderful technical element that still makes me smile. One of the characters is a recordered computer voice (think Siri) and OPHS did a phenomenal job recording it or mixing it or altering it or whatever they did to achieve it, because it sounded absolutely authentic and was so funny that it stole the show.

27 REASONS NOT TO BE IN A PLAY by Alan Haehnel - McNaughton High School - I can think of dozens and dozens of reasons not to be in a play that I could write about, but Alan Haehnel beat me to the punch and wrote this fast paced ensemble comedy. Actually, there are well over 50 reasons in the various renditions of the play, but McNaughton plucked 27 of their favorites and brought them to life. I was impressed that McNaughton had a totally different approach to their play this year. I am used to them building huge, beautiful sets, but this year they scaled back the set to nothing but black blocks and instead created beautiful stage pictures with the actors themselves. And there were a lot of actors up there, so they had plenty of options and took full advantage of them all.

It looks like more laughter is on the way tomorrow afternoon. At 1:00pm: DOG FLEET from Oxbow Prairie Horizons School and SMARTY PANTS from Gordon F. Kells High School. Then at 7:00pm: SELFIE from Gordon F. Kells High School, MISS BETH from Redvers School, and THE MOUSTACHE from Lampman School. I can't wait!