BFA Fairfax Drama To Present Controversial Play

The cast and crew of the Bellows Free Academy-Fairfax Dramatic Arts Ensemble have just started rehearsals for a new production. This show may be a little more controversial - a little edgier - and a little too realistic. The play is about a school shooting. The show "Bang Bang You're Dead" by William Mastrosimone "is a resource for dealing with a broken world that's violent, unhealthy, unfair, and beyond the power of anyone to fix except today's generation," according to the playwright.

When asked why this play was selected, director Sara Daniels commented, "The script was brought to me by a student. This actor was interested in the show for many reasons, primarily that school violence is a reality and the play is written to educate both students and the community about both the causes and effects. When a student has that much passion for such a cause, what can I do but listen?"

When BFA-Fairfax began production of the play, both Daniels and the school's principal, Scott Lang, were nervous about the community response.

'Anytime you deal with a controversial topic you worry that others will protest. However, I felt that this topic was important enough to pursue," said Daniels.

Copies of the script were given to several members of the community for review before auditions began. Included in the review were a school board member, a public librarian, a local church pastor and parents. Overwhelming support was given for the production.

"The last thing I want to do is have my cast members be ostracized by community members for a script that I had a decision in selecting. We all feel that this is an important topic to discuss and keep in the forefront."

Although Vermont has not been touched with such a horrific occurrence as a school shooting the statistics are overwhelming. According to the National Campaign to End School Violence statistics, there have been over 75 people killed and 124 more injured in school shootings. The age of the shooters ranged from as young as six to as old as 19. More statistics on school violence can be found at http://www.ribbonofpromise.org.

Fairfax will be presenting the play on March 10,11 and 12 at 7 p.m. All profits from admission will be donated to the Ribbon of Promise campaign dedicated to ending school violence.

Look for future notices about "Bang Bang You're Dead" as the cast continues to prepare to present the show and educate the school and community about school violence.