Have you ever wondered what happened after Goldilocks ran away? Do you remember your first job? These questions are what inspired the short plays presented by the junior and senior high Drama Clubs. As I entered the auditorium to see my friends in the plays, I couldn’t contain my excitement. We sat down and eagerly anticipated the start of the Goldilocks play.

The play,“The Trial of Goldilocks,” consisted of Goldilocks, played by Olivia Elliott, who was on trial for breaking into and destroying the bears’ home. The 4 bears — Mama, Papa and the twin babies played by Marilyn Lopez, Christian Paredes, Erinn Crowe and Kiera Connolly — were represented by the prosecutor, played by Zachary Achino. They were pressing charges against Goldilocks, who was represented by the defense attorney, played by Catherine Tutrone. The crew assembled in court, along with the jury, judge and clerk. The judge was played by Chris D’Amato, the clerk by Emma Ann Mathew, and the jury consisted of Zoe Barroso, Samantha Tavolacci, Emily Dela Cruz, Anisha Gogna, Sonia Chatterton, Robinson Ocampo, Geselle Fragoso and Angelina Gallagher. Four members of the jury doubled as vendors in the beginning of the play, and these actors were Maeve Collazo, Isabella Boccia, Elizabeth Turner and Ava Neisha.

The play was hysterical, and my friends and I were cracking up at the witty exchanges between the two lawyers, who couldn’t get along, as well as the banter between the serious and no-nonsense clerk and the judge, who had hearing problems and misinterpreted half of what was said. Both the defense and prosecution gave their interpretation of what happened, each spinning the truth in their own way. The prosecutors made Goldilocks seem like a criminal who trashed the home of four sweet and innocent bears, and felt no remorse. The defense, however, portrayed Goldilocks as a perfect little girl who became the victim of a horrible group of forest animals, who lured Goldilocks into the bears’ house to eat her. Both versions were insanely entertaining! In the end, the judge and jury ruled that everyone was at fault, and Goldilocks and the bears became friends. As for the attorneys, they were forced to act as judges for a week to learn to get along and witness boring, bickering lawyers just like themselves. I was shaking with laughter when the lawyers were given the news, but I lost it when the judge threw his wig on the defense attorney’s head and sat down. The play was spoken entirely in rhyme, which added to the humor. The cast did an amazing job, and I still can’t figure out how they were able to deliver their lines without laughing.

After a brief intermission, the senior high play, called “Paper or Plastic” began. This play starred Jennifer Venus as Sarah, a girl who just began her job as a cashier at a somewhat strange supermarket. The manager Carl, who was played by Anthony Mineo, was super harsh and didn’t listen to anything Sarah was trying to tell him. The most useful piece of information was the simple line, “don’t make Angus mad.” The other cashier named Regina, played by Nora Cernjul, was unintentionally intimidating Sarah, talking about all the weirdos who frequent the store. Sara was determined to be the best, and didn’t let this get to her. She met several other staff members, including Kenny, played by Jake Urban, and his gang of cart-hunters. The cart hunters included Julia Burke, Sam D’Amato, and Nafeesa Hussein. These four took their job almost too seriously, and saw their task of finding and collecting all the shopping carts as war, and they played to win. Another employee named Little Sam, played by Tushara Mathew longed to be a cart hunter, but the others laughed and said she wasn’t able to handle the difficult job. While the cart hunters were doing their job, Sarah encountered several strange people who were regulars at the supermarket. This included the Greenies, played by Anthony Gemelli and C-Ro Fernandez, who were obsessed with the environment as well as peace. There was also the cowboy played by Christopher Rasquin, who was caught in a duel with Kenny. Customers such as the Cracked Egg Woman played by Lyla Perez, Social Woman played by Max Vidro and the Tabloid Woman played by Ariana Salcedo gave Sarah a hard time, causing Carl to take his anger out on her. Eunice Abaya also played a customer who made frequent appearances at the supermarket. The cart hunters who rolled across the stage in a shopping cart had us all roaring with laughter, and so did the in store announcements that took place throughout the play. The Announcers were played by Emer Price and Jason Matthews, and their announcements were hysterical, especially the ones mentioning brands inspired by FPM teachers. What really got me was the shoplifter, played by Tulah Chatterton. The shoplifter managed to run across the stage during numerous scenes, stealing countless items while wearing a different disguise each time she appeared onstage. My friends and I couldn’t stop laughing at the comedic antics and all the crazy characters.

However, my friends and I were arguing for the majority of the play, whisper-screaming at our friends who had been in the junior high play. Our arguments revolved around one simple question: who the heck was Angus? Our question was answered when Sarah met the first nice kid to enter the supermarket, played by Trevor Smith. He was actually kind and helped Sarah, who had had nothing but problems and obstacles since starting her job. After stressing about not angering Angus, this nice stranger confirms that he is, in fact, Angus. The play was so much fun to watch and I am so grateful that I was able to watch both amazing performances!

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