Bringing Shelley’s Shadow to Life: PCHS Black Box – Pirate Theater – Debuts with Haman’s The Monster

On October 30—the eve of Halloween—the Pass Christian High School theater department opened the doors to its Black Box theater – Pirate Theatre – for its inaugural performance. Across three daytime class blocks, students sat on the edge of their seats while teachers eagerly anticipated seeing their students step into the spotlight. To launch this intimate new performance space, director and teacher John Haman chose to stage a reading of his own original one act play, The Monster, a haunting story inspired by Mary Shelley’s classic gothic novel Frankenstein. Haman said, “This reading was designed to draw in kids for a short commitment and give them a flavor of what it is like to act, and to perform in our new Black Box Theatre.”

For those unfamiliar with the format, a staged reading differs from a fully mounted theatrical production. Rather than relying on elaborate sets, full costuming, or memorized blocking, actors perform with scripts in hand. The focus shifts entirely to script interpretation, vocal inflection, facial expressions, and physical presence. Strip away the visual distractions of a traditional set, and the audience is invited to immerse itself directly in the rhythm of the language and the raw emotion of the story.

Before the lights dimmed, Mr. Haman delivered a warm welcome speech explaining the play’s backstory and his inspiration for adapting Shelley’s work. As the performance began, the Black Box transformed into an eerie, immersive environment. Rolling fog poured across the floor under the glow of a sharp red light, while the student tech crew crafted a titillating atmosphere of moodiness and tension through carefully timed sound cues and visual effects.

The cast delivered remarkable performances across the board, using their voices and subtle gestures to build palpable suspense. Sophomore Milas Reece gave an extraordinary performance as Frankenstein’s Creature; novice actor Reece brought an impressive level of depth and intensity to the role and simultaneously made me smile, tickled my heart strings, and made me profoundly sad. Counterbalancing that dark energy was senior and veteran performer Leeka McBride, whose role as Elizabeth’s gentle, compassionate presence provided the soft, human core necessary to ground the play’s heavier moments.

Leeka McBride (12) and Milas Reece (10) in their roles as Elizabeth and the Creature. In the background, Lily Krebs (9) and Eriyuana Barnes (10) wait to interact in the play in their roles of Victor and Henry, respectively.

All members of the cast were given spotlights – even if they originally did not think that they played a major role in the production. Freshman Isabelle Milevsky, multi-role understudy stated, “Something I learned from my experience and this play is that just because you do not get all of the spotlight does not mean you aren’t playing an important part in what you do.” Main cast members include: Lily Kreb’s (9) Victor Frankenstein was energetically manic; Eriyuana Barne’s (10) loyal and determined Henry instilled reason and humanity in the play; Avalyn Bryan’s (10) father was stern and medical; and Sandra Carter’s (11) role as Victor’s long dead mother was haunting and prophetic. All of the other students who played supporting characters, stage crew, and front of house were integral and necessary for the play’s overall success (all members of the cast listed below).

One English teacher whose 4th block class viewed the play, Jennifer Butler, said that she was amazed at how the students were able to stay in character for so long each performance – three times a day! “It was very impressive,” she said. From my perspective as an English teacher, the thematic weight of Haman’s script hit remarkably close to home for high school students. The play grappled with rich, complex ethical dilemmas: the heavy responsibility a creator bears for their creation, the dangers of playing God, and the tragic irony of how well-intentioned individuals can turn into monsters while society unfairly demonizes those who simply look or act differently. In fact, the core question of the play to me is: Who is a Monster? Sandra Carter, a junior who played Victor’s mother, said, “The core message of this play is that we should not see things in black and white; the goal was to leave the watchers wondering who the real antagonist is. This is a way of thought that I really resonated with and doing this show was a reminder of it.”

The main cast taking their final bows in front of their peers in Pirate Theatre. Claire Anthony, Lily Krebs, Eriyuana Barnes, Milas Reece, Leeka McBride, Avalyn Bryan, Claire Marquez, and Sandra Carter. Not pictured here nor above – other roles and crew: Izzy Dietz, student stage manager; Avery Werner, Brooke Ladner, Koi Conrad, and Alyssa Swindle, graphic design and ushers; Parker Haman and Kobe Vu, ushers.

This opening production of Haman’s The Monster was an absolute triumph for Pass High’s theater program. Haman said, “I hope to soon announce a full production of a full-length play I would like to produce in April for three performance dates. It will be different than anything we have done here.” As both an educator and an enthusiastic audience member, I am eagerly looking forward to seeing what our talented cast, tech crew, and director bring to the PCHS Black Box stage next.