September 12, 2021

Student-Directed Thriller ‘The View’ Debuts at Manchester

Marisa Engbrecht

The curtains of Cordier Auditorium opened to reveal a talented cast directed by Aubree Hall on Nov. 5 and Nov. 6 at 7:30 p.m. in the psychological thriller play “The View,” written by Ken Watson-Hayes. Students, faculty and members of the community were encouraged to attend the play that ran for about half an hour and charged a $5 admission fee for the community.

The beginning scene opened on left stage, with two officers discussing their problems. A girl came on stage then, and began to tell her story. “Just take your time,” said one figure. The play took off, revealing a thrilling and intense story of a girl being kidnapped. The acting during the kidnapping scene sent chills down spines as the ear-splitting screams of the actress echoed in the auditorium. As the play continued, one could see the horror and fear behind Marcy’s eyes, who is the main character of the play. The scenes changed as Marcy told her story, with lighting ranging from red to green controlled the scenes.

In the story, the audience finds that Casey wanted to protect Marcy, so she kidnapped her and kept her in her basement. “You didn’t see me, but oh, did I see you,” said Casey, the kidnapper. As the tables turn and the officers ask Casey about her side of the story, the audience found the abusive roots in Casey’s homelife. The question of whether Casey should be punished arises as one sees her try and take control of her horrible life.

One of the most exhilarating scenes was the murder of Charlie, Casey’s sister. Charlie arrives home after an argument with her father, and finds Casey to be acting very off. The house is a mess and a noise comes from the basement. In fear of Charlie finding Marcy tied up in the basement, Casey stabs Charlie in the abdomen. The blood looks real as it bled through Charlie’s white shirt. As Casey freaks out in another room, Charlie runs to the basement and finds Marcy tied up. She frees her, then dies slowly on the ground. Marcy runs upstairs and fights with Casey as the police arrive.

The play ends with the question of whether Casey deserved to rot in prison or if she needs real help. The officers discuss this as the lights fade away, and the audience is left with the questions: did Casey deserve her fate? The play was directed by first-year Aubree Hall. “My favorite part was getting to watch each character develop,” she said. “All the actors and actresses really embraced their role too and it was so good.”

At first, there had been a different director, sophomore Jesse Cowan, who had to step down, so Hall took over and finished directing the show. “Directing was a big of a challenge,” Hall said. “I overtook three role changes and of course I had to block out the whole show myself and get everyone’s costumes planned. We overcame many challenges together as a team and it was just so much fun! I loved directing so much. I’m so thankful for an amazing cast and crew.”

The nine cast members were Mycal Stewart, who played the main character Marcy; Darcie Patton, who played the kidnapper Casey; Jasmyn DeHoyos, who played Officer Jefferson; Emi Bottoroff, who played Officer Reed and 911 Operator; Jade Gourley, who played Linda; Ben Vore, who played Eric; Gracianne Nohl, who played Charlie; and Braxton Stewart, who played Jason.