On Monday, February 28, Fossil Ridge High School’s students took on the stage, some for the very first time. Fossil’s Introduction to Acting class, taught by Kristin Rust, is held each year and serves as many students’ first experience with theatre and allows them to improve their skills in a safe space.

This quarter, the class has chosen to perform a comedic murder mystery called Employees Must Wash Hands Before Murder that takes place at a fast-food restaurant titled the Burgertorium. When a murder takes place in the restaurant, chaos and comedy overcome the stage.

Student director, Cooper Hand, loves the show and has learned a lot through the opportunity to direct. With lots of stereotypical and silly characters, Hand stated, “there’s a lot of mixing between reality and what’s not reality, and it’s really fun and entertaining to watch.”

This show is especially close to Hand’s heart, as he attempted to perform it with the rest of his class back at Preston Middle School a few years ago before COVID-19 forced them to cancel it. Hand claimed that the entire class unanimously asked Rust to visit the Burgertorium once again. “It’s been such a fun opportunity to see what I did in eighth grade. Now, being a sophomore, I’m experiencing a whole new aspect of it. And I’m really getting to do all of it pretty much by myself, Ms. Rust has let me just take the director role and just go with it,” he said.

The cast has provided all of their own costumes and although their set is simple, “everything is brought to life by the acting,” said Hand.

As this was many students’ first time in a theatre class, some were unfamiliar with acting basics like projecting, speaking loudly so the audience can hear you, and cheating out, facing the audience during a scene. As an actor, and now a director, these basics are now instinctual for Hand, “It was super fun to be like the person that was teaching them how to act,” he stated.

Hand has also taken on many roles in the upcoming spring musical, Legally Blonde, both as a very memorable character and a variety of smaller roles. “It’s just so fun being able to portray all these different characters,” he said.

At just forty minutes, this show is a small insight into the school’s theatre program, but Hand is so thankful for all the effort put into it. “Everyone has done such a great job. Everyone has worked so hard towards this,” he said.

And, you can catch Hand in Legally Blonde the Musical coming this April.

Gallery • 12 Photos

B. Horvath

Echo Lee shows off strong emotions to the attentive audience.