Cappies Chronicles: Melissa Weng's Review on Reminiscence

Cappies is a theatre critic program for high school students. Under the guidance of Mr. Lockey, Ridley's team explores local theatre productions and critiques them individually. These reviews, among many others from secondary schools participating in the Cappies program, undergo a selection process where the top three are chosen for publication in the St. Catherines Standard. Melissa Weng ('27) was chosen and published for her review on Reminiscence! - Rawnie Sun, Head Editor-in-Chief

The jock, the nerd, the shy girl, the delinquents. All of these and more are very stereotypical high school characters. But in West Niagara Secondary School’s original production, Reminiscence, these stereotypes break out of their assigned roles and are more than they seem at first glance.

Reminiscence was a work born out of immense collaboration between the 29 members of the cast. However, Conner Croft, who also plays Adult Ted, was the one who came up with the main idea and plot: a group of former schoolmates meeting again at a high school reunion in 2024, 20 years after their prom night in 2004. Through both comedic and heartfelt soliloquies, the ‘true self’ of the characters is shown to the audience, revealing facets of their unseen lives.

West Niagara chose to portray the ‘Prom night’ and ‘Adult’ versions of the characters using different actors. The production’s dual ‘Adult’ and ‘Prom’ cast usage was effective in scenes where they appear on stage at the same moment, such as when the characters ‘speak’ to their other self and start to expect themselves for who they are.

Scarlet Moodie as Prom Brittany and Nathan Haight as Prom Zack made a great high school power couple with astounding chemistry, displays of affection, and comfortability with each other. Both Sam Beal and Conner Croft, as Prom Ted and Adult Ted respectively, did an impressive job keeping up the nasally ‘nerd’ voice. Other actors, such as Keesey Van Leeuwen as Prom Emily and Kalista Gross as Adult Chelsea made their characters more genuine through voice, body language, and gestures.

The Teachers brought comedy to the stage through their constant frustrations and annoyances with one another, especially towards the science teacher nobody likes, Mr. M, played by Nate Arsenault. The amusing group is like a refreshing breath of air away from both teenage angst and adult problems. And, of course, nobody could forget Caretaker Joan, who always suddenly appears on stage and sweeps away while grumbling.

Despite the minimalistic sets and costuming, West Niagara did well at distinguishing different characters and making do with their 4 props, 2 chairs, and 29 actors. The costumes involved black clothes with simple accessories such as Brittany’s necklace or Dave’s bandana, but it served the purpose of visual hints about the characters. The production used loud 2000s music during transitions and specific scenes. But the music was sometimes played too loud at the beginning and interrupted the immersion of the play. However, the crew quickly caught on and adjusted the sound levels later on.

Reminiscence might have been a show about a high school reunion on the surface. But underneath, it was truly about who you are and who you want to be, and how sometimes, breaking out of your shell and taking risks is worth it.