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The Tempest
Dhahran Academy High
School Fall Drama Production
Ariels resting |
Ferdinand and Miranda working
blocking |
A strange and fishlike smell... |
Tribal! |
Director taking note |
Rehearsing the banquet |
Mazen working sound |
Choreographer Kathy Swords
gives direction |
The Tempest
Cast of Characters
Cast of Characters
The Sailors
Boatswain.............................................................................
Bassel Elsaghir
Sailor.....................................................................................
Marjana MacNaughton
The Court
Alonsa, Queen of Naples...................................................
Shanell Doane
Gonzalo, a wise old counselor...........................................
Jared Schaffner
Sebastian, brother to the Queen of Naples.....................
Bashar Amr
Antonia, sister to Prospera.................................................
Banah Anabtawi
Adrian, a young counselor..................................................
Lama Sabbagh
Ferdinand, son to the Queen of Naples...........................
Bryan Shoemaker
The Fools
Trinculo, a jester....................................................................
Hisham Ra'afat
Stephano, a butler...............................................................
Kellen Porter
The Exiles
Prospera, rightful duchess of Milan...................................
Rhiannon Longstaff
Miranda, daughter to Prospera.........................................
Dana Nasser
The Islanders
Caliban, a slave.................................................................
Michael Pickering
Ariel, an airy spirit...............................................................
Coty Bajoie & Guini Keith
Various spirits.....................................................................
Elizabeth Alexander, Kristen Berensen, Bryanna Brown, Katrina
Brown, Kate Elkins, Kristin Faria, Bradley Large, Krista Lindsay,
Marjana MacNaughton, Viki Roth, Lama Sabagh, Leila Sayegh
Directed by Arlee Olson
Assisted by Yvonne Boettcher
Musical Direction, and original music by Patrick Gross
Choreography by Kathy Swords
Sound and Lights by Mazen Oweimrin & Breck Van Slyke
Costumes by Cathy Brown, Guini Keith, Kris Muller, Rose Roth
and Leila Sayegh
Technical support by Sammy Padilla
Set design by Chris Beck and Viki Roth
Acknowledgements and Special Thanks
Lyle Porter, DAHS Principal
Brent Mutch, ISG Superintendent
Chris L'Esteve & Support Services
The Background
This story takes place long long ago, or perhaps it occurs far in the future. Whenever it happens, it certainly cannot be the present, because our human hearts today are incapable of the extremes of treachery, self-deception, and prejudice you will see enacted before you on our stage. Aren't they? The story begins in Europe. A well regulated civilization of law and order has been overrun. Darkness covers the continent. People have banded together under the protection of powerful feudal lords called Dukes or Duchesses.
Prospera, Duchess of Milan was one of these feudal lords. This play is her story. She was a fair and gentle ruler, but her heart was elsewhere. She spent long hours enwrapped in the secret study of the ancient art of sorcery, learning to control the elements of Air, Earth, Fire and Water. Little by little, she left more and more of the government to her sister Antonia, who found herself well suited for the job.
This play is Anatonia's story too. Antonia collected taxes, keeping careful records. She resolved her vassel's disputes honerably. Her heart grew heavy as she watched winter draw near, seeing the stores of food dwindle, seeing enemy warriors gather on the horizon. So she formulated a plan. Antonia approached Alonsa, the Queen of Naples, the most powerful of all the feudal lords, asking for protection. Alonsa agreed. And so Milan, a dukedom which had never yet bent to a greater power, was bound forever to pay tribute to the Queen. Knowing her sister Prospera, the rightful Duchess of Milan, to be too proud, too stubborn to bend her knee in homage to another, Anatonia solved the problem the only way she knew. She used Alonsa's army to send Prospera and her young daughter Miranda to sea. Did Antonia know that the small boat was leaky? Did she know that the only provisions aboard were those deposited secretly at night by the wise old counselor, Gonzalo? Surely no sister could be so perfidious. Could she?
By Providence Divine, the small boat washed ashore upon an island uninhabited by mortals, except for a boy named Caliban. This is his story as well. Orphaned upon the island as a child, he dwelt there alone for many years. Prospera and Miranda made him their companion, doting on him, and teaching him their language, and what bits of other learning they felt proper. But as he grew, their differences, both physical and cultural, became more and more apparent -- and more and more odious to both mother and daughter. Eventually, he appeared to them so misshapen in both body and soul that he became no longer a companion, but a slave. What else could they do? His speech, his ideas, even the color of his skin was so profoundly different. What else could they do?
And what of the other inhabitants of the isle? Prospera found there spirits -- the souls of rivers, trees and flowers, and these she did command through magic. Chief among them is Ariel, the soul of the island itself. Ariel can be many places at once -- or only one. She does her master's bidding, but not through choice.
For twelve long years Prospera and Miranda endured exile on the island. Miranda grew in beauty, and character, while Prospera perfected her learning, and nursed the grudge she bore against her sister, Antonia. And then -- one day she saw her chance:
The Storm
Through her sorcery, Prospera saw a ship carrying her sister
Antonia, the Queen Alonsa, and others of the Queen's court as
they sailed home from Africa, where the Queen's daughter, Claribel,
had wed the King of Tunis. Using strong magic, Prospera bid the
spirits of the water to conjure up a tempest. She wrecked the
boat upon the shores of her island. The queen, she separated
from her beloved son. The fools she parted from the rest of the
company. And so each wandered, left to his own grief, fears,
and ambition.
The Court
The Queen and her closest advisors did Ariel quickly put to sleep,
in order to test the character of Antonia. Had she changed, or
would she prove treacherous once more?
The Fools
The jester and the drunken butler quickly found each other, and
they found the "monster" Caliban. He seemed a monster
to them just as he did to Prospera. Thinking themselves the only
survivors of the wreck, they set off together to find Prospera.
But to what purpose? To what lengths will their delusions lead
them? Would they have fooled themselves as quickly if not for
the contents of the bottle Stephano rescued from the wreck?
The Son
Is there any hope for the future of mankind? Can this one prove
worthy? If so, Prospera will marry him to her daughter. If not,
will the sea prove a watery grave after all?