Lake Central Theatre Company presented “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” on Thursday, October 19.
Ally Dobricky, who played the mischievous Brom Bones, was excited about the opportunity of this play. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow first hit the Lake Central stage nearly two decades ago.
“It’s been a while since this story was put on here and it was especially written for Lake Central,” Dobricky said. “We wanted to do a spooky show with Halloween coming up. It’s been a lot of fun to work on this show.”
Ryan Faulkner, who played the comical Ichabod Crane, describes the attention to detail required by the cast and crew to make sure everything came together successfully.
“We’ve been rehearsing for this multiple times a week,” Faulkner said. “As we got closer to this moment, we even had some days of four-hour rehearsals. We eventually started blocking, which went by really fast.”
According to Bob Gustas, the fall play director, this story goes back 17 years in Lake Central Theatre Company history. Brianna Rodriquez, who played the beautiful Katrina Van Tassel, wanted to ensure this performance served as a great tribute to the cast and crew of the previous rendition.
“We’ve had a lot of fun putting this play together,” Rodriquez said.
“Members from the old cast are coming to see the play one day, so hopefully they enjoy the performance.”
While everything came together in the end, Rodriquez acknowledges there were a few bumps in the road along the way.
“The hardest part was that we didn’t have some of the set pieces just a couple weeks before the show,” Rodriquez said. “Some of the blocking had to be changed last minute, but we were able to adjust pretty quickly.”
Dobricky agreed with the notion of the cast and crew coming together to overcome the obstacles that arose over time. She’s performed with Faulkner and Rodriquez for the Lake Central Theatre Company throughout their high school careers. With all three playing leading roles in this performance, she cherished the entire experience.
“The three of us getting the chance to be the lead actors in a play was a dream come true,” Dobricky said. “As seniors, I think we’re all going to remember this performance forever. Being able to have fun on stage with some of my best friends has made for a great time.”
Faulkner describes how the Lake Central Theatre Company has enhanced his abilities over time. He credits the directors for guiding him and his peers in the right way.
“Our directors always say this is educational theatre,” Faulkner said. “You learn more about theatre with every new role that you’re assigned, from the acting to the technical side.”
Overall, the Lake Central Theatre Company had a great time working with one another to bring this Halloween classic back to their stage.
“It has been a pleasure to work with such a hardworking cast and crew to tell the story of this timeless classic once again,” Gustas said.
Performances will continue on Friday at 7 p.m., along with two Saturday showings at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.
For more information on Lake Central High School, you can visit their website.