When a plane crashes on a remote island, a few students survive. It will be “survival of the fittest” at its best this weekend, when Tri-School Productions students from Serra, Mercy and Notre Dame illuminate the stage in Lord of the Flies.

“From the prophetic and virtuous to the lovable and brutish, each survivor attempts to establish control as the reality–and brutal savagery–of the situation sets in,” said Tri-School Productions Artistic Director Lawrence Long. “The conflicts that arise throughout the story reveal the students’ capacity for empathy and hope, as well as illuminating the darkest corners of the human spirit.”

The ideas of community, leadership and the rule of law are called into question as the characters decide who has a right to power and what the consequences of the acquisition of power might be. The struggle to find a way of existing in a community with no fixed boundaries invites the audience to evaluate the concepts involved in social constructs and moral frameworks.

“This play has a lot of shock factor that the audience won’t be expecting,” said Serra senior Aidan Broderick, who plays “cool kid” Jack.

The most interesting aspect of this play is that there are two casts–one all male and the other all female. It has been an unusual but interesting experience for all involved.

“This world-famous novel is written solely about boys,” Long noted. “William Golding said that he wrote only about boys because he had been a little boy and needed to write from his own experience. He also said that with boys, it’s easier to boil them down to a small representation of society. During the 1950s, that might have seemed true. But, almost 70 years later, with a hopefully greater understanding of the equal nature of all people, using boys to represent society only gives us one distinct impression of modern society as a whole. If we were to only use a cast of girls, the same would be true.”

Tri-School students were up for the challenge, and they said it has been an interesting experience to have the two distinct casts.

“It’s different,” said Mercy senior Siobhan Cloherty, who plays Piggy. “I do miss the coed theatre environment, but this has been a very interesting process. Piggy is not a popular kid, but she’s not timid or afraid to speak her opinion. She knows she’s smart–that’s her downfall. She cares about people and wants people to like her, but she has trouble keeping her opinion to herself. I like the way that this show tackles the issue of bullying head on. Some of it is difficult to watch, but the subject of bullying cannot be ignored.”

“This show delivers a good message against bullying,” agreed Serra sophomore Nino Houle, who plays Sam. “It’s a struggle between major good and evil.”

The actors have mastered incredibly challenging roles–characters that have incredible depth and layers.

NDB junior Sam Sutter has enjoyed playing the role of Sam.

“She’s funny and has a twin sister named Erin,” she noted. “It’s fun to play a twin because it’s great to have someone next to you and share scenes with you. This has been a fun, comedic role for sure! I love everything about this show–the message, the set and costumes. It’s an unusual show and it has been great for to get to know the girls from Mercy.”

“My character, Piggy, is a levelheaded character who wants rules,” said sophomore Nolan LaMar. “Lord of the Flies is such a cool show, and it’s been fun to be with all of my friends.”

The all-male cast production will begin at 7:30 p.m. on October 25 and November 1. The all-female cast will begin at 7:30 p.m. on October 26 and November 2. All performances will be held in Serra’s Gellert Auditorium. To purchase tickets for Lord of the Flies, visit www.trischoolproductions.com.

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