On November 14th and November 15th, the Holyoke High drama club performed three zombie-themed one-act plays in the Sears auditorium. “We’ve been working really hard and it paid off because I think the shows turned out to be great,” said drama club member Josie Moriarty ‘16.

The first play “Ten Ways to Survive a Zombie Apocalypse” by Don Zolidis didn’t take long to make the crowd erupt in laughter as “Nana” (the grandmother played by Kariana Natal) tried to outrun a hungry zombie, showing the audience why there aren’t many elderly folks in zombie movies. Two narrators (played my Madison Chouinard and Michael Toledo) then proceeded to take the stage to give examples of different methods to survive an apocalypse. These methods were acted out in hysterical skits by Madysen Lawrence, Kenny Roche, Justin Baez, and Emma Price. The four managed to escape the jaws of the undead using a range of methods: reasoning, romancing, and even just running away from the zombies. There were two bonus methods the narrators stated- the last was to end the play and pretend it never happened. As the four turned around to exit the stage confused, the narrators called the zombies and pushed the three survivors into the crowd to be devoured which came to the final tip: never trust the narrators.

The second play, “All I Really Needed to Know I Learned From Being a Zombie” by Jason Pizzarello, started with the zombies stumbling down the aisles blank-faced. As they appeared on the stage one at a time, each gave a brief soliloquy of what they finally learned once they were transformed. Lisa Mora told of how she learned to count her blessings, which were actually just the body parts that still remained attached to her body. Ashley Westry said she had learned to not sweat the small stuff, since she no longer had to take shower after becoming a zombie.

The third play “Just Add Zombies” by Jonathan Dorf was about a high school putting on the Shakespearean play “Romeo and Juliet.” The lead actress Cora (played by Summer Dwight) was eager to fulfill her dream of getting a standing ovation which could only be fulfilled if the play was perfect. After the first show, the ensemble noticed a dead lady sitting in the audience. Out of panic and desperation the cast used a magical book and brought her back to life as a zombie. They decided to put her in the play to draw in a crowd, but as the second show was about to start the lead actor Mitchie (Darian Gonzalez) and Cora were suddenly surrounded by the cast that had all been bitten and turned into zombies. That didn’t stop the pair from finishing the show themselves while fending off their undead friends.

The final play (also featuring stellar performances by Aiden Moriarty, Madysen Lawrence, and Isabella Courchesne) was the perfect way to end a hilarious evening with the undead. All of us here at The Herald can’t wait to see what the drama club does next!

Editor’s Note: Although their work happens behind the scenes, The Herald would like to acknowledge what a fine job was done by the stage crew, lighting and sound crew, director Ms. Sweeney, and especially the amazing work by the make-up artists. See some photos of their handiwork below.

Editor’s Note (x2): Want to know more about The Drama Club? Check out The Herald’s November entry into our Spotlight series that profiles the club here.