Our fall play, “Around the Fire,” was performed outdoors in the Riggs Courtyard on Friday, October 29. It was a chilly, dark night – the perfect setting for this original IMS production in which our drama students were able to write, and in some cases direct, short stories about fear, change and expectation.  

Director’s Note

Dear Reader, 

It was our pleasure to present Around the Fire to a field full of frozen friends and family this past weekend. This process was a joy from the very beginning. Students began the first rehearsal discussing the tropes of spooky films, and by the end of that first day, they were performing vignettes about freaky dolls, forest monsters, and the dangers of sleepovers at new friends’ houses. From there, a small group of writers met for a week, sketching out what themes and ideas mattered to them. A few days later, we were all back in the Assembly Hall, reading a fresh script. Actors shouted for the parts they wanted, and the show began to take shape. 

Telling a story is always a risk. As Mr. Saturn put it, we all have a fear of being found out, left out, kicked out, and so to stand up and say that something is important is a brave and compelling thing.

I want to share my deep admiration for the students who brought this play to life and my gratitude for those that came out on a windy night to support them. 

See you for the next one. 

-Danny Tieger
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