SSHS DRAMA CLUB
My years with SSHS Drama Club were in three separate time periods. My association with the SSHS Drama Club began when I assisted two colleagues (Mr. Dave Tingley and Mr. Ray Steeves) with “an evening of One-Act plays” in 1962-63 and with the annual “Key Club” show the same year. Meanwhile, I directed two class Drama presentations performed in front of the school at assemblies.... both of these plays were student-written and provided me with my first “High School” opportunity for Directing. The year 1962-63 proved to be the beginning of what became a life-long fascination (or even an “addiction”) with High School Theatre.
Here’s a list of the productions with which I was involved at SSHS:
SSHS 1962-66
1962-63 Class Plays (2); Three One-Act Plays (“The Search For Wildcat McGillicuddy”, “Keep Your Halo Straight”, “The Blackout Mystery”); Key Carnival - a review
1963-64 Class Plays (2); Three One-Act Plays (“Don’t Kiss Her Now”, “The Playwright’s Dilemma”, “Shades Of A Ghost”); Key Carnival - a review
1964-65 Class Plays (2); Three One-Act Plays (“Pa’s New Housekeeper”, “They Put On A Play”, “Tramps, Teens and Terrors”); Key Carnival - a review
1965-66 Class Plays (2); Key Carnival - a review
1969-1972
Following my return to SSHS, in 1969, after I had completed university work in England, the theatre productions at SSHS became bigger with our first musical theatre venture and more intense with our entry into the N.B. Drama Festival. The play, “Steps From Beyond”, won an “honourable mention”. The following year (70-71) saw an even more demanding Drama Club program that included another Gilbert & Sullivan production, another entry into the Provincial Festival, and a full-length mystery. In 1971-72 we embarked on our first “Broadway” show (“Carousel”) and a British farce (“See How They Run”) which was performed in St. Stephen and “on the road” in three different tours. Great fun !!!!
1969-70 Pirates of Penzance; Steps From Beyond (N.B. Festival)
1970-71 The Mikado; The Rats (N.B. Festival); The Mousetrap
1971-72 Carousel; See How They Run; See How They Run (Tour version); See How They Run (Tour version #2); See How They Run (Tour version #3)
1975-1989
Between 1972 and 1975, we lived in England but returned to SSHS in 1975. The following years (1975-1989) saw the activities of the SSHS Drama Club expand to include a variety of musicals, full-length farces and thrillers, Dinner Theatres, reviews, a British style pantomime (“Aladdin”), an assortment of one-act plays, touring productions and exchange productions (for example with a school in Montreal). In the original SSHS Theatre, the first “SOLD OUT” sign appeared for a production of “The Sound of Music” - over 500 packed the theatre with all seats taken and Standing Room Only - what a thrill! The move to the new SSHS in 1980 marked another step in our growth. Almost every performance of the musicals were “Sold Out” - including the remarkable “Wizard Of Oz” for which we had to add an extra performance that sold out in 15 minutes.
1975-76 Chase Me Comrade; Chase Me Comrade (Tour version)
1976-77 Bang Bang Beirut; Dracula
1977-78 Sweeney Todd; My Fair Lady
1978-79 Wait Until Dark; The Sound of Music
1979-80 Who Goes Bare?; Oliver!
1980-81 The King and I; Annie Get Your Gun
1981-82 Something’s Afoot; The Wizard of Oz; Tell Tale Heart; Dora The Beautiful Dishwasher; Night Fright; Tell Tale Heart (Montreal Tour); Dora The Beautiful Dishwasher (Montreal Tour); Night Fright (Montreal Tour)
1982-83 Best of Broadway - a review; The Haunting of Hill House; Fiddler On The Roof
1983-84 Uproar In The House; Finian’s Rainbow; Passion, Poison and Petrifaction, Scrooge (TNB)
1984-85 Snow White; The Sound of Music; The Patient (Dinner Theatre); Not Tonight (Dinner Theatre); Sorry Wrong Number (Dinner Theatre)
1985-86 Done To Death; Annie
1986-87 Ah! Sweet Mystery; Comin’ Round The Mountain; Passion Poison and Petrifaction; Grease!
1987-88 The Mystery of The Black Abbot; Trifles; The Haunting of Hathaway House; Final Rehearsal; Aladdin
1988-89 Oliver!
In 1989, we moved from St. Stephen to Abbotsford, B.C. and so ended my lengthy and rewarding years with the SSHS Drama Club. Those were wonderful years and will remain among my most treasured theatrical memories.
(You can see a collection of SSHS Drama Club theatre photos, programs, newspaper articles and other by visiting the “Productions” pages on this website)
IF YOU HAVE MEMORIES OF SSHS DRAMA OR MUSICAL THEATRE THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE ON THIS WEBSITE, PLEASE EMAIL ME (rdencer@shaw.ca) - PLEASE SEE THE CONTACT FORM FOR AN EASY-TO-USE WAY OF SENDING MESSAGES AND ATTACHMENTS TO ME.
Thanks to Debbie Tozer, SSHS Library Staff for her assistance in researching and providing material from SSHS Yearbooks.
The content of this website is subject to copyright 2011-2021 by Ray Dencer
“Broken-Pencils.ca” is NOT affiliated in any way to the current St. Stephen High School Drama program and should not be construed as representative of that program. For information on the current SSHS Theatre program, please contact the school.
