During the auditions for the One-Acts, nerves were high for actors peering at the directing table. With a calm demeanor and watchful eye, senior Colin Alsop sat front and center giving notes and planning his cast for his own play, A Crime in Justice.
Directing a play as an experienced director is hard enough, but directing a play as a high school student has a lot more management that goes into it.
He loves working with such talented people and bringing his vision to life. “I like seeing it all come together,” Alsop said.
He has spent all four years in the Poway theater community and decided to “try something new besides only acting in plays,” his junior year. Alsop said his most memorable roles are as a director of last year’s One-Acts with 14 Ways to Fail Your College Interview and playing the role of Sebastian in The Little Mermaid.
Alsop’s dedication to theater is prevalent in his detailed notes and directing style when working with other actors. Longtime friend and current actor in Alsop’s play, junior Antonio Vargas highlights the many different techniques and acting exercises Alsop uses to attain his perfect vision.
“I have played Walter Belfort in the past alongside Colin when he was an actor in this same One-Act… but now as a director he directs us in quite a personal way. He knows all of us personally, so he’s able to help us play to our strengths with our characters,” Vargas said.
With 11 years of acting experience, Alsop has been able to incorporate his acting skills into his directing style. He is particular about the believability of a scene for an audience. Tweaking changes in the vocal delivery of lines, finding specific time-accurate set pieces, and approving hair and wardrobe choices, he prepares to immerse the audience into the story of a A Crime in Justice.
Starting it as just a drama class showcase play, Alsop has continued to tell the story of A Crime in Justice narrated by Arthur Ryan Andrews (senior Ellie Donaldson), who becomes a suspect in a death at their house party and the guests try to solve the murder mystery. Donaldson, another one of Alsop’s good friends, has seen how, “he’s not afraid to really transform himself into his character and be larger than life.”
In the future, Alsop hopes to take his directing and acting career professionally, and he hopes to study at UCLA for Theatre Arts-Integrated Studies.
