BY RILEY MULLAN
STAFF WRITER
The Actors Playground performance of “Bang Bang You’re Dead” at CHS on Dec. 6 left audience members shot through the heart.
Students and faculty had the opportunity to see the play, as performed by the Freehold acting troupe that included three CHS students. The focus of the play is on gun violence in schools.
The play focuses on one main character, Josh, played by 21-year-old Ed Squires of Matawan, who must face the repercussions of murdering five of his classmates and both of his parents. The performance began with a sequence of frantic 9-1-1 phone calls from the day of the shooting, and Josh waking up in his jail cell.
The victims of the shooting demand to know why he killed them and, through their demands, the story of Josh’s life is chronicled up to the day of the shooting. The audience finds out about the “bullying, self-loathing and suicidal thoughts” that Josh suffered, leading up to his regret for the lives he took, as stated on the Actors Playground website.
The play’s director, Ralph Colombino, introduced the play to students with a quote from Margaret Mead, something he felt described the cast’s efforts with the play.
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has,” Colombino told them.
“It wasn’t one sided; it showed multiple angles,” freshman Annie Diaz of Holmdel said. She added that since the cast was made up of mostly teenagers, the performance felt more realistic and relatable.
The idea of bringing “Bang Bang You’re Dead” to CHS started when guidance counselors Carol Caruso and Sandra Gidos suggested it, according to Principal James Gleason. After looking into it, Gleason discovered that three CHS students, seniors Danielle Cooper of Rumson and Caroline Palsi of Brielle and junior Emily Woods of Middletown, were members of the cast. Gleason added that the CHS Drama Club performed “Bang Bang You’re Dead” approximately six years ago.
Gleason could remember how moved he was, describing the play as a “fantastic performance on a very difficult subject.”
Recognizing that some students might not be able to handle the topic of the play, Gleason issued a permission slip that allowed for students to opt out of watching it if desired.
“The play gets very dramatic and intense … to sit through that, it’s a little hard if you aren’t prepared for it,” junior Violet Hoagland of Long Branch said.
Freshman Kayla Smith of Belmar chose not to watch the performance. Smith and a few others did not feel comfortable with the heavy subject matter.
“I don’t want to see the play, it’s violent and all and I’d rather play it safe,” Smith said.
Even though the subjects brought up in the play are sensitive, some students thought it was necessary to bring the issue to light. Sophomore Amelia Lautenberg of Holmdel thought it was a lighter way to learn about gun violence, rather than have a discussion about it in class.
Cooper, who primarily played the role of the school principal and the cop in the play, said, “It was amazing being a part of such an important piece. You really feel like you’re part of something bigger than yourself and like you’re making a difference. It’s difficult at times because the content is so heavy but it is worth it.”
The cast recently performed “Bang Bang You’re Dead” at the Stop Gun Violence Now Theater Festival in Manhattan on Dec. 12 to 15 to mark the one-year anniversary of the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. In that mass murder, 20 children and six adults were killed.
The group’s mission is to provide “four days of powerful theater centered around the themes of gun violence and gun control with the goal of creating discussion and inspiring action.”