Lights, Camera, Action

The group of performers gather in a circle and hold hands, taking a deep breath as they begin their rehearsal. They warm up, and with that, the magic begins.

This year’s fall theater performance was “Radium Girls”, a historical drama that is a little different than a typical theater performance. The story follows Grace Friar, a young girl who works in a factory painting watch dials with glow in the dark radium paint.

“Radium Girls is about a real thing that happened, it’s a historical drama, so a lot of the people, places, and events are real, but obviously the dialogue is fictional,” said senior Josette Spinner.

The historical occasion surrounding this is World War I, as the play is set in the 1920s. The watch dials were given to soldiers fighting in the war so that they were able to see in the dark. The girls who worked in the factory were made to paint watch dials using a method that had them dip their brushes into the radium paint, then make the brush into a point by putting it into their mouths. This was extremely dangerous as it was causing them to ingest poisonous, toxic radium. As a result, the girls’ jaws rotted and fell out, and they eventually died from it. However, beforehand, they file lawsuits and work to win their case in court, which they eventually do.

Grace Friar is one of the leads of the production, played by junior Kaleigh Carlson.

“Grace is a sweet, kind, soft-spoken girl who just wants to have a normal life. Get married, have children, all that kind of stuff,” said Carlson.

This is only Carlson’s second theater performance, but her talent has landed her a leading role in both performances. She previously performed in last year’s musical “Oliver.”

“Honestly the best part of the process has been spending time with the people and learning from the people around me. I’ve especially learned a lot from the production because I’m not technically in the theater strand, so I’ve learned a lot of the people around me,” said Carlson.

Spinner has also learned a lot from this production. Her roles included Marie Curie, an ensemble member, and Mrs. Reader.

“I really appreciate representing real people, because I believe that this story is very important and that these girls were very brave to do what they did. I also really enjoyed playing multiple characters and finding a uniqueness in all of them,” said Spinner.

Performing “Radium Girls” was a unique and new experience for the performers as well as VPAA Theater Instructor Christa Vogt.

“I purchased the book and I read it, and when I put it down I couldn’t stop thinking about it for days and days. It stuck with me and had a really powerful effect, and it was something I thought the kids should learn about and explore,” said Vogt.

Performing a historical drama piece also has additional unique processes that Vogt enjoyed.

“I enjoyed the analysis discussion with the students; in the beginning after we would read each scene, we would have in-depth conversations about the characters. Not only as real people, but as a piece of dramatic literature. In addition the themes that we were talking about connected to the piece and were really impassioned by it,” said Vogt.

In addition, the performers don’t want to do anything that misrepresents the people they are playing.

“There is a heightened level of respect for these characters because they are real people who have lived and died for this cause. So there’s this sense of honor and respect that we want to value,” said Vogt.

“Radium Girls” was a unique performance with masterful execution by both the students and their instructor. It was informative as well as enriching for those performing and those witnessing. Something Vogt wishes those involved take away is the power of ensemble.

“The power of ensemble. The power of everyone working together to cross that finish line together, and working towards that common goal, where the whole is more important than any of its parts,” said Vogt.