Daniel Kim

Junior Lucas Cooper, who played Captain Thorne in the Freshiors’ show, holding the skull that summoned his character back to life for a short period of time

This year, S!NG participants received a contract that everyone wanting to join either of the student production teams had to sign. The contract focused on two main things as prerequisites for participation: behavior and attendance. 

In particular, the contract requires students to treat one another respectfully or potentially be subject to “disciplinary action” for bullying or harassment. It also requires directors to receive prior approval before publishing social media or other written announcements to their teams. In terms of attendance, the document says that “inconsistent or lack of attendance may result in a decrease in responsibilities during the days of the performances.”

According to the contract, “S!NG should always be a space where we can learn, creatively express ourselves and support one another regardless of what team you are on.” English teacher William Lacker, who has taken a new role as the “production coordinator” of S!NG, designed the contract.

Mr. Lacker was hired this past spring and has professional theater experience. He said he was asked “to find ways to improve the process, the structures, and the culture of S!NG, and one of the first ways you do that is by managing expectations from the get-go.” He said that having such agreements before beginning rehearsals for a show are common practice in his theater experience.

In terms of behavior, the contract has a section on “Respect for Everyone Involved.” It asks students to treat one another with “dignity” during “conversations and interactions both on social media and in person.” Since S!NG is a competition between students from all four grades, the line between a healthy competition and conflict can get blurry.

Sophomore Sabrina Wang said, “sometimes when [the students] are too competitive, that can result in bad talking and rumors being spread, and that kind of ruins the trust within our community.”

Semore Overall Director Natalia Piekarski said she “thinks competition during S!NG is kind of good because it pushes people to have the best show.” Without the aspect of competition, she feels like it would “take away the spirit of S!NG.”

Beyond addressing issues surrounding the competitive nature of S!NG, the contract also addresses a concern often raised by student leaders of the productions: attendance. With students participating in a wide range of extracurricular activities while all maintaining demanding courseloads, it can be difficult to have consistent participation in the months leading to the performance. 

The contract says that students are expected “to be present and courteous in your attendance.” 

However, whether or not the contract improved attendance is up to debate. Freshman Vivienne Galvin, who played the lead role in the Freshiors show, said, “Many students tend to miss practices due to other commitments.”

At a meeting to debrief this year’s performances and discuss next year, Mr. Lacker said that “[the contract is] not frozen. It’s not written in stone. We’re going to re-evaluate it. We’re going to modify things, we’re going to add to it, and we’re going to respond to the needs of S!NG on a yearly basis.”

Despite concerns over its effectiveness this fall, the overall reception from the contract has been positive, and students think it was a beneficial change to the S!NG experience. 

“I think it just made [S!NG] more professional,” said Freshiors Backstage Director Krish Wadia. 

As the S!NG season came to an end, many participants reflected on not only the show itself, but how it shaped their time at THHS. Freshiors Overall Director Madilyn Mercado said that “[She has] met so many talented and genuine friends through S!NG, and it helped [her] experience a smooth transition from middle school to high school.”

Krish said that “[He] thinks that it’s a very cherished tradition at THHS, and [he] hopes that it doesn’t get changed too much in the coming years.”

“Being part of this community, which at times feels more like a family, allowed me to get closer to new, valuable friends each year,” Madilyn said.