By Joanna Tao
GateHouse News Service
Posted Nov 04, 2010
WESTON — On Sept. 1, school had just started, but the students were already looking ahead with excitement to the fall play. To many students in the Middle School, the only questions that mattered were, "Do you know what the play is?" and "when are auditions?"
Now, eight weeks, 40 rehearsals, two auditions, and many hours of painting, typing, researching and improvising scenes later, the 45 cast members and large stage crew have created a stirring play about the history of Cambodia.
The play, "Kampuchea: A Journey into Cambodia," was researched and written by the cast, and opens Thursday, Nov. 4 at 7 p.m. at the Weston Middle School.
With rickshaws, elephant rides, Cambodian dances, and a judge-psychiatrist rabbit, this will be one show you won’t want to miss.
Performances are Thursday, Nov. 4 at 7 p.m., Friday, Nov. 5 at 3 p.m., and Saturday, Nov. 6 at 7 p.m. in the Amy Potter Center at Weston Middle School. Tickets are available at the door.
"Kampuchea" was inspired when the director of the show, Abraham Mills, took a trip to Cambodia over the summer. As a recipient of the Schoen Travel Fellowship, Mills, a history teacher at Weston Middle School, traveled to seven countries in 57 days.
He worked his way from west to east, from Italy, Israel and India, to China, Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand.
"Our last flight continued east through L.A. and that made it an around-the-world trip, which was pretty exciting," he said.
This trip inspired Mills to bring an untold story to the Weston school community.
"Of all the countries I visited, Cambodia inspired me the most," he said. "The people are warm and welcoming, and they have a fascinating culture."
He added, "What surprised me the most was their resilience and their positive attitude. They went through such dark times under the Khmer Rouge that it is great to see the country rebounding."
Mills thought this was the perfect time to have the cast research and write a play on Cambodia.
"There is so much to learn, and I knew we had a great group of curious and talented actors to work with," he said. "The story of Cambodia is complex, and it is worth telling. It is really important that we learn from our past."
Despite this, "Kampuchea" does not take place only in the past. The play has ties to current events in Cambodia, such as the trial of Commander Duch in August of this year.
Although it includes stories of Cambodia’s tragic past, "Kampuchea" is not a tragedy. There is plenty of cultural comedy, such as when the main character (played by Donya Potter), a typical American teenager, does not get along with her parents.
The play opens with the trial of Commander Duch (William Anderson), and then we follow the journeys of two teenagers through Cambodia. One girl (Jacqueline Morris) must survive the reign of the Khmer Rouge; the other visits Cambodia, the place where she was born, with her adoptive parents (Katherine Binney and Michael Brown).
"The students have been wonderful," continues Mills.
"They have researched survivor stories, read articles, and created scenes through improvisation. They have done simulations to capture the mood of the scenes.
"We were lucky enough to get a grant to bring choreographers Channa and Bun from the Angkor Dance Troupe in Lowell to work with the cast, teaching them traditional dances such as the coconut dance and the monkey dance. We also had a special guest volunteer his time to talk to the cast about growing up in Cambodia under the Khmer Rouge."
All proceeds from the show will be donated to an orphanage in Cambodia (The Sharing Foundation) and to Light of Cambodian Children. Cambodian crafts will be on sale during the show.
This will be a thought-provoking and hopeful story, about families coming together, created by the students. This is a show not to be missed.
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