One-act play reflects real-life

Tea Area students have been preparing for their production of “Selfie.”

The play, by Bradley Hayward, takes place senior year and problems are mounting for a group of high school students as they prepare for the future. The characters deal with bullies, parents, pressure, sickness and self-judgement. They document their year one picture at a time and come to realize life is not about what other people see, but about the pictures they have of themselves.

Director Mary Beth Sutton said the South Dakota High School Activities Association rotates their schedule between humorous and serious. This year’s contest is for serious plays.

“As I was proofreading a number of plays last spring, my main criteria for selecting a play included the content being relevant and something the students could relate to,” Sutton said. “This play addresses difficult issues students face from being an outcast to insecurity compensation, over-achieving, wanting to experience being loved, finding yourself, divorce, an eating disorder and a life-threatening illness.”

Junior Jaya Wilson, 17, is participating in the one-act play for the first time this year. She enjoys drama and feels that her character “Sam” is relatable to her life.

“I love the fact that my character, Sam, is extremely relatable. I’m a junior, so Sam stressing out about grades, the SAT/ACT and college is extremely easy to connect to, especially after getting a million questions about it during winter break,” Wilson said.

For senior Jacob Hyland, 18, this is his third year in one-act plays. He plays “Tyler” and likes drama because it something different to do.

“I like my role because it is something totally opposite from my personality. It makes it a fun challenge to tackle this role,” Hyland said.

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