Life in the big city — some people love it, others, including this reporter, find it to be a bit overrated.
There’s something charming in the simplicity and silence of a small country town that folds over every night by sundown. In Waunakee, although it’s not quite that small, for their winter play the high school theater department will perform the Tracy Wells classic, “One Stoplight Town.”
“Auditions for the play began right before Christmas break,” said Rick Braun, the tech director and set builder. “We got to serious rehearsals pretty quickly after we came back from break, we meet every day from 3:45 to 5:30.”
Curtains go up on Feb. 15, 16, and 17 at 7 p.m at Waunakee High School. This year, there are between 40 and 50 students participating, according to Collin Anderson, who is an English and social studies teacher directing the production. Anderson has been involved with theater for over a decade, and this is his third year in Waunakee.
“We chose the play because a lot of the students had seen the one act version last fall, and they found it entertaining. Plus, they’re familiar with the story now because of that,” explained Anderson. “It’s a lovely story about a small community, and it’s been fun to work with the kids to tell such a nuanced story. They seem to find it rewarding to read between the lines and explore the subtlety of it, it’s really just been a good fun time for all of us.”