The North Branch School (grades 7-9) will present its annual play, "The Tower," on April 12 and 13 in the Ripton town firehouse.
Each year NBS students create a play of their own invention, using their stories and poetry, current political and cultural events, experiences from the school year, individual musical talents, and topics the class studied to create an original theatrical production.
This year's play centers on a small coastal town in South Carolina. Established and conventional, the town and its original inhabitants are sent into a state of rage-filled chaos when some very "strange and weird" people move into their community. The play revolves around the destructive outcomes that occur when groups judge each other primarily from their superficial "identities," rather than for each persons' distinctly individual and unique qualities. While humans may appear to be one way on the outside, they often share more than they could imagine. Hovering over the town is a large, mysterious stone tower, which simultaneously inspires fear and curiosity in the townfolks. Who, or what resides there? What will become of the townfolks if they venture into the tower?
The students begin writing the play in January. This year, the school's over-arching thematic focus has been Utopia and Dystopia. The students have, among other things, read To Kill A Mockingbird, studied the Berlin Wall, Black Lives Matter, Henry David Thoreau, the History of the Holocaust, and the history of Women's Suffrage.
Most years, the play is performed in the Ripton Community House. Due to ongoing renovations at the RCH, this year's North Branch School play will be performed in the Ripton town firehouse. Parking is available next door at the Ripton Elementary School.
The play will be performed on April 12 and 13, at 7:30. Tickets are $7 and the play is open to the public and handicapped accessible. Please join us!
For more information, call 388-3269, or visit the school on the web at https://www.northbranchschool.org/
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