Photo by Tom Ackerman

Security guard Mike Dolan acknowledges the ruined theater floor

The studio theater floor will undergo construction starting June 8 as a result of water damage from the recent school play Metamorphoses, which rendered the floor unusable.

Water was a central theme in the play, calling for a swimming pool to be a part of the set. Logistically, the studio theater was selected over the auditorium after being deemed most suitable for the set.

“We were worried about the weight of the water on the stage [in the auditorium]. That’s sort of the technical reason. The artistic reason is that Mr. Thomas [the play’s director]…wanted the audience to see action going on in the pool because the studio theater is raked (angled) to allow for better viewing,” commented Mr. Kevin Holly, LHS Theater Coordinator.

The water weight became a pressing point initially because of the way the floors are structured. The auditorium was hardly considered for location because the floor is essentially wood held by beams, which concerned Mr. Holly and Mr. Thomas. The studio theater, on the other hand, is above solid concrete.

LHS is currently looking further into options for the most practical and desirable floor to be set, although there is no date for the installation.

While such set damages were discussed and avoided as best as possible, the school was prepared financially, as “about 85 percent” was covered by insurance, according to Fine Arts Supervisor Mr. Dustin Helvie. The remaining damages are being paid for by the set budget, allotted by the school preemptively.

In addition, the school took precautions seriously, with towel racks present for the actors to dry themselves and the stage, as well as kiddie pools placed behind the stage left and right for further drying.

“We put down a tarp first, and then a layer of construction paper beneath that, and then we put a layer of carpet padding on top of that,” said Mr. Holly.

The actors took part in keeping their production safe and clean, as well.

Senior Joanne Brundza, an actress in the play, stated that “everyone would try to get their costumes as dry as possible. Everyone had undergarments on, so you would take off the sopping wet costume, give it to a prop person, [and] the prop person would take it to the back…where we would put all the wet costumes. We were constantly taking towels and drying off the stage.”

The damages ultimately arose from leaks in the water hoses, rather than the pool itself.

“We had some issues with one of the pumps. The hose came out of the pool at one point. In trying to keep the pool clean and heated, we ran into some complications,” stated Mr. Holly.

In fact, Mr. Holly purchased an actual above-ground pool, as opposed to constructing one, to avoid potential risks in building one.

The pool was up for about two and a half weeks, and the damage was found during the deconstruction process, or “strike.”

“[The play] was something unique and I feel like it had never been done before, but I knew it would be a technical challenge,” said Brundza, who described the floor having “huge bumps” throughout.

To reinforce the idea of doing the play, LHS administration and tech directors looked to local schools who had done the play successfully, like Glenbrook North High School, as well as Deerfield and Libertyville’s sister school, Vernon Hills.

“[The pool] changed your acting style…It really made you think about choices as an actor. when you’re standing on a stage, it’s really easy to fall out of character sometimes…It’s easy to fall into the same set of mannerisms that you use when you act. In the water, you really have to think about the choices you’re making…It was unlike any high school experience I’ve had in a play,” concluded Brundza.