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High School Fall Play “This Murder Was Staged”
By Marjorie Hansen
The high school fall play for 2025 is This Murder Was Staged, written by Patrick Greene and Jason Pizzarello. Mr Holden, the director, is very confident the play will go well, even with the small cast of eleven. This Murder Was Staged is a comic murder mystery. It was chosen by the cast, who wanted a murder mystery play. The cast is very excited and is getting ready for the performances.
Mr Holden, who is an English teacher at Pierson High School. Mr Holden has never been in a production himself, but has been directing and producing for about thirty years. Even though he’s been producing and directing for that long, he’s never directed anything outside of Pierson. The four seniors, Daniella Andrango, who plays Detective Drake, Rowan McManus, who plays Sinclair Hemmings, Ashley Buestan Perez, who plays Keira Grimbal, Marsha Humbolt, and Alwyn Gray, and Lucy from Peanuts, and Hannah Salazar Sierra, who plays Suzanna Phillips, Constance Flugelbert, and Xander Bell, are critical to the performance going smoothly.
Lilianna Anderson, in 9th grade, plays Greta Cranston and Linus from Peanuts, and described the acting experience as interesting and always fun. It’s Lilianna’s third year performing with Pierson after being in Willy Wonka, Freaky Friday, and Peter Pan. She decided to act because she wanted to meet new people, and some of them became her new friends. Lilianna recalls that “everyone [in the performance] puts their heart and soul into acting” and that when the performance happens, it will be great.
The cast includes a variety of ages. The seniors are Daniella Andrango, Rowan McManus, Ashley Buenstan Perez, and Hannah Salazar Sierra, as mentioned above. The junior is Isla McLean, who plays Taylor Franklin, Sylvia Laferve, Carol Humbert, and Patty from Peanuts. The sophomores are Gigi Papazian, who plays Trudy, and Theo Robinson, who plays Thornton Jackson, Harold Bund, and Charlie Brown from Peanuts. The four freshmen consist of Riley Simmons playing Mark Trumball and Jason Greene; Lilianna Anderson playing Greta Cranston, and Linus from Peanuts; Georgia Webb playing Carl Custodian and Dame McGraff; and Eva Dağdeviren playing Scout Tatum and Sammy Mulvaney. Veronica Denkewitz is an assistant director and stage manager. An additional seven students are also helping backstage and with lighting and sound.
The performances are taking place on Thursday, November 20, at 7 PM, Friday, November 21, at 7 PM, and Saturday, November 22, at 2 PM and 7 PM. Tickets are $5, and you can purchase them at the main office or on the day of at the entrance. Light refreshments will be available for purchase during intermission.
Mr Holden is very confident that this performance will go smoothly. He says that “the students are doing excellent and getting the humor.” Altogether, this production should be very enjoyable. Make sure to purchase tickets soon, so that you can enjoy it too!