The Oxford High School theatre department has a long history of producing outstanding performances. This January, John Davenport, teacher and theatre director, looks to bring something new to the stage. The theatre department is building a new piece of equipment called flight lines that will allow the cast and crew to be able to fly in set pieces during a play.
When performing a play live, the set needs to be as life-like as possible. Flight lines add a wow-factor to the stage that would be hard to achieve without it. The new flight lines will be used in the upcoming “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” and will add flying set pieces to make the magic that is necessary for the show to come to life.
“The current cast will benefit from it since the show has many locations and effects in which the line sets will be used to create,” Davenport said. “It will add 11 new lines we can use for flying scenery, props and items of special effects.”
Being able to levitate on stage will strengthen the theatrical performance and the things the theatre program will be able to further perform. It will produce more exciting and entertaining shows for all who attend.
“They are about to have Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.” Bullard said. “It’s really cool that we are going to be able to have levitating on stage. It will be so much fun.”
The convenience of flight lines makes the process of preparing for a play much quicker and easier. OHS theatre has a reputation to uphold, and the equipment will allow the cast to make every showing better than the last.
“The new line sets will keep us from having to remove the curtains each time we want to use a line,” Davenport said. “This will help with many shows and help keep the curtains in pristine shape for longer use. Of course, once it is complete we have to hang each set piece on the various lines so it will be well into February before the cast and crew can actually work with the entire set.”
This new equipment will allow the theatre to put on a variety of shows. It will further the OHS theatre program and lessen limitations on what can be performed on stage. The equipment will change the dynamics of the on stage production and add to the capabilities of what the theatre program is able to achieve.
“It will just add to what they can choose to do and perform,” Bullard said. “Now they could choose to do Wicked. They can choose to do Peter Pan or old classics. There are all different kinds of things they will be able to do differently just because it adds another dimension to the stage.”
The cast members of “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” have faced minor setbacks with the construction of the new flight lines. Senior cast member Ann Hunter Bigham believes that the new flight lines will add to the set as well as the show, even with small complications.
“The challenge that we face is that we are going to be out of the theatre while they are building it,” Bigham said. “For about two weeks we will not get to practice on stage which is necessary for the show, but there are a lot of elements in ‘Harry Potter’ that are essential to the plot that will be granted to us with these new flight lines.”
The theatre program’s future is bright as they look to continue to add to the production of their upcoming shows. Theatre goers can expect more innovations from the cast and crew that will advance their performances.
“There are other improvements they are looking at doing as far as video and audio capabilities as well,” Bullard said. “Just like everything that is associated with our theatre, they are top of the line. They are looking at cutting edge technology to make sure that our kids are given all of the essentials that they need to give a great performance.”
