On the stage, junior Antonio Vargas steps into the spotlight. With every line he recites, his heart beats faster as he watches the audience’s faces. Two months of preparation falls onto his shoulders to perform well in The Crucible.
Vargas has been in the Titan Theatre program since his freshman year when he played Demetrius in A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
“I joined theater initially after wanting an outlet for my love of telling stories and always wanting to act, and I stayed for the friends and community I gained,” Vargas said. He continues to enjoy theater in and outside of school. In August he played his dream role, Jason Dean, at the Junior Actors Company Production of Heathers: The Musical.
In this year’s fall play, The Crucible, Vargas initially did not audition for the lead role of John Proctor due to the huge time commitment, but he later decided to give it a try and succeeded in getting cast. But Vargas is no stranger to lead roles. Last year he took on the charming Willy Wonka in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
To connect with his character, John Proctor, is a farmer who is trying to contend with his actions in the story, Vargas has found his motivation with “comparing the severity of the events in the show to my own past personal events to get an idea of what he must be feeling.”
Senior Colin Alsop, the student director of the play, has become close to Vargas throughout their time in theater together.
“I met Antonio when we were both in A Midsummer Night’s Dream two years ago. My favorite memory with Antonio from theater would be when we got to write and perform in a one act play together in drama because we worked collaboratively with a group to bring an epic of our own making to life, and it was really awesome,” Alsop said.
Although the students have done an amazing job bringing this show to life, the directors are the ones who have made it possible. Director Sharon Wezelman has had assistance with directing from Justine Valdez The directors have cast and gotten to know Vargas as an individual and on stage, and have watched him improve.
“I knew he had great acting skills prior to this show, but I’ve seen him truly grow at his technique over the last month. It was so incredible to watch at rehearsals because you could tell he really did his homework like a true actor,” Valdez said.
Vargas hopes to continue acting in both film and stage performances and hopes to try to direct in the future. In the next year Vargas intends to star in the spring musical and future productions offered in his senior year.
