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The Winchendon School

The best college prep school for students with significant unrealized potential

Theatre

Fall Theater Production: Macbeth

The Winchendon School has completed its first play production for the 2023-2024 school year. Students and staff have been working countless hours to put together the fall season play of Macbeth. The viewings for the play were on November 3rd and 4th. To say the least, there was a fantastic showing for both performance days. 

The background summary of the play Macbeth is that three witches are trying to tell the Scottish general Macbeth that he will be the King of Scotland. Macbeth kills the King, courtesy of his wife’s instruction, therefore Macbeth is the new King. Macbeth also ends up killing more people out of uncertainty. Therefore, the civil war erupts and there is more violence and death to come. These actors did a phenomenal job of performing many violent and gruesome scenes in front of a well-attuned audience. 

Photos taken by Anthony Agnelli ’21

Ms. Parker, the director of the outstanding performance, had a few words to say about the amazing show put on by these actors. She states, “Shakespeare is an intimidating playwright to grasp and memorize when you’re unfamiliar with his writing, so when an actor reaches the point where they know the words, understand them, and can begin acting with them it’s very exciting.” This play took many tireless practices and rehearsals to be able to learn all of the tedious words a Shakespearean script entitles. 

Photos taken by Anthony Agnelli ’21

Shakespeare consists of very old writing, so yes, there were some challenges the cast and crew had to overcome while producing this show. Ms. Parker adds, “Getting the actors used to the language so that they know what they are saying and how best to communicate it to an audience is a longer process with older text, like Shakespeare.” I can firmly say that everyone who attended did enjoy the well-prepared Shakespeare script and acts. 

Congratulations to all of the students in the play, the students in tech crew and lighting, and the faculty who all helped to put on an impressive show!

Article written by Abigail Stone (senior)

Photos taken by Anthony Agnelli ’21

Meet Julia!

Even before she arrived at The Winchendon School, Julia knew she wanted to major pre-med in college. In the fall, she will be attending Williams College as a Biology major. What’s really interesting, however, is what she didn’t know when she arrived. In the four years, she’s been here, Julia’s fallen in love with Spanish and Latinx history – all of which she discovered with service and leadership opportunities from The Winchendon School. Julia won’t just be majoring in Biology at Williams, she’ll be a double major with Spanish and Biology.

If there’s a Winchendon School bucket list, Julia may have hit every item on the list. From student body co-president to a role in every theater production since her first year, Julia exemplifies stepping up to take advantage of all the opportunities we offer all our students. And be sure not to miss Julia in her last performance as the Fairy Godmother in this year’s musical, “Cinderella.”

Catch “Cinderella” on May 12 and 13th on our Massachusetts campus and follow along as the performance comes together on Instagram at @winchendon_performingarts.

Meet Summer!

An honors student and three-season athlete, Summer holds an on-campus job in the Marketing Department at The Winchendon School and fills her time outside of classes with studying, participating in student-run organizations such as WACA (Winchendon Alumni of Color Association), and hanging out with friends.

Before she graduates, she wants to check off every item on her Winchendon School bucket list. What’s left? Stepping out on stage in a musical! Summer’s one of the amazing cast members in this year’s musical, “Cinderella.”

Catch “Cinderella” on May 12 and 13th on our Massachusetts campus and follow along as the performance comes together on Instagram at @winchendon_performingarts.

Those 2017 Theater Kids: Where Are They Now?

We’re excited for the start of the academic year, having students on campus again, and welcoming back the multi-talented math teacher, Ms. Peterson. In 2017, Ms. Peterson put together this “promo” reel for the fall musical, “Fiddler on the Roof.” We’ve updated the video answering “where are they now?”

You can read more about Ms. Peterson in her faculty biography.

And a big thank you to Bradley Bigelow ’21 who recut Ms. Peterson’s original concept and added in the “where are they now” updates. You can read about Bradley’s success at The Winchendon School here or watch one of the other videos he edited here.

Now. Here. This.

How do students put on a high school musical during a pandemic? Under the tutelage of Ms. Parker, students are perfecting staging, acting, singing, and dancing in front of a camera. After editing, their productions are premiered online and available for replay on demand – our own little “Winchflix.”

For the production of “Now. Here. This.”, due to contractual obligations, families need to sign-up in advance of the premiere. Please use the form below to request virtual tickets and the password for the event. This production will only be available for three days online.

Virtual Ticket Request Form

Not every student on stage at The Winchendon School is planning to major in the Arts, in fact, most won’t, but their love of combining voice, acting, movement, and dance will help them no matter what career path they choose in developing resilience, patience, and self-confidence.

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