Woodberry Forest Presents Doctor Faustus

Arts & Entertainment Events Reviews

 

Photography by MaKayla Grapperhaus
Photography courtesy of the Burke family

MaKayla Grapperhaus, staff writer

On Thursday night, Feb. 2, students at Woodberry Forest School performed Doctor Faustus, a classic drama by Christopher Marlowe. The play was performed in the school’s Bomb Shelter Experimental Theater, a small, dark space; a fitting atmosphere for the setting of the play.

The private, all-boy boarding school in Madison was founded in 1889 and built on property once belonging to President James Madison’s family members. According to their website, Woodberry Forest prides themselves in providing boys with an extensive academic curriculum, as well as their honor system which teaches students how to become honorable.

The show was completely packed, making it difficult to find an open seat, as the small room was filled with the eager friends and family of the performers. Anyone who has attended plays at Woodberry Forest knows these are not your typical, high school plays. Woodberry puts on highly elaborate shows that include costly stage props, intricately designed costumes, and of course, the dedicated performers.

The cast Thursday night showcased their talent and the hard work they put into preparing for the show. As the lights dimmed, a large pinwheel atop the small, elevated, stone portion of the stage was put in the spotlight. The pinwheel was painted with special neon paint, seven symbols glowed in the blacklight, each representing one of the seven sins: pride, envy, wrath, gluttony lust, sloth and greed.

Doctor John Faustus, played by senior Josh Staufenberg, is a scholar who, throughout his life, struggles with each of the seven sins before ultimately selling his soul to the devil in exchange for powers of the supernatural and becomes a demon at the end of his earthly life. Mephastophilis, the demon who helped Faustus in his pursuing of sinful deeds, was played by Ethan Barbour who is also a senior at Woodberry. Including the two main characters, there was a cast of ten who each represented one of the seven sins along with playing various supporting roles.

The entire show was filled with dramatic acting, spinning of the pinwheel, and neon paint highlighted by blacklights. There were also many explosive props that surprised the audience throughout the night. At one point, a light above the stage caught on fire and the play was stopped by the production crew and quickly put out by using a ladder to unscrew the lightbulb.     

However, despite the interruption, the cast played along and Doctor John Faustus humorously thanked his “servants” for performing the heroes act. Regardless, the show was a big success. Although it ended with Doctor John Faustus unfortunately meeting his doom by being masked by demons and dragged off stage; the show couldn’t have been a bigger hit.

On the back of the information pamphlet, the director’s note sums up the heart of the play: “Faustus the play reminds us that hell isn’t other people, after all: hell is egomania. And so it ultimately reminds us to ignore the siren song of self, and to live, openly, imaginatively, empathetically, and it warns us of the dangers of falling to heed this admonition.”   

After watching the show, I can say the Woodberry cast delivered this message flawlessly. Their performance of Doctor Faustus proves that Woodberry Forest and its talented students truly know how to put on a high school play like no other.