Strike Jonathan, Strike!

Last minute cast changes, a man-powered tomb, and a 2-meter plant falling on stage, all unexpected but taken care of nonetheless to make Dracula by Bram Stoker possible.

A switch had to be made when Enrique Rodríguez, a senior initially cast as Dracula was unable to play the part since he could not keep up with his schoolwork. He was replaced by 11th grader Juan Carlos Segovia less than a month before the debut. The role of Lucy Wenstrom was played only once by 12th grader Valeria De La Maza because she left town to attend a wedding. Thus, Andrea Kiger, a fellow senior, took her place in the following two shows.

Behind the scenes, the part in Act 1 where Count Dracula rose from the dead was actually two people pushing forward the wooden board Juan Carlos was lying on. During the closing night, a plant that was part of the set for Act 2 fell without warning, leaving a pile of dirt on stage. The crew’s way of improvising was to send out Valeria Izaguirre, a 12th grader who played a maid named Helga, to clean up the mess.

A total of 41 students were part of the play, and Paco Segovia had to say goodbye to more than half of them since this was the last ASFM production for 21 seniors. Two of them, Mini Marin and Claudia Elizondo have been acting since they were in 4th grade, making this their ninth year in theatre.