School News
A Stage for Every Voice: Fayerweather’s Unit Play and the Power of Student-Led Theatre
The Unit Play has been a Fayerweather tradition for over 30 years! Since the project began, it has taken many forms. At one point, participation in the play was mandatory for all Unit students, and rehearsals took place during the school day. Eventually, it shifted to an after-school program, with the genre alternating year to year between Shakespeare and a contemporary play. During the COVID pandemic, Fayerweather students were among the first to present Zoom theatre, even devising an original play specifically for the virtual format. Most recently, Fayerweather has participated in the Massachusetts Educational Theater Guild’s (METG) Middle School Drama Festival as one of 90 middle school members.
Fayerweather students have thrived in the METG one-act festival, presenting Twelfth Night, The Con, and, this spring, The Giver.
What makes this experience so special? Students take the lead in every way imaginable, serving as performers, technicians, designers, musicians, and audience members. Their efforts have been celebrated with special recognition awards for acting, musical performance, technical excellence, and creative design. However, our involvement with METG doesn’t begin and end with the drama festival. This December, our artistic students received additional recognition when Rosie Karlsson presented their original costume design at METG’s Excellence in Technical Theatre Contest.
For last year’s production of The Lion King KIDS, Rosie took the lead in designing a cloak worn by Mufasa, Scar, and Simba as a symbol of royal status. Rather than creating a single cloak passed unchanged from lion to lion, Rosie designed three cloaks in varying stages of repair. These three cloaks created the illusion that one garment was physically transforming alongside the state of the Pridelands under each ruler’s leadership. Mufasa’s Pridelands are thriving, and his cloak is in perfect condition. When Scar usurps the throne and Mufasa is killed, the cloak is ripped and torn by the wildebeest stampede. Scar wears the damaged cloak without repairing it, representing the devastation of the Pridelands under his rule. Finally, when Simba reclaims the throne, the cloak is repaired — but not restored to perfection. Visible stitches bind the torn pieces together, symbolizing that the Pridelands is healing, with much work still to be done.
Rosie represented the story, their design, their school, and themselves with the confidence, joy, and intentionality we have come to expect from a Fayerweather student. Their hard work and creativity earned them 2nd place in the Middle School Excellence in Technical Theatre Contest. In addition to this exciting accolade, Rosie received a certificate and a small scholarship from METG, intended as “an investment in [their] future success as an artist,” with the hope that this resource will “strengthen [their] own capacity to produce work of a superior quality.”
And now, we look ahead to The Giver this spring. With a script rich in opportunities for powerful performances and unforgettable technical effects, we know that Rosie and their peers in the Unit will go above and beyond with their creativity, curiosity, and advocacy as young artists. We are so fortunate to create theatre in a generous and loving community — thank you for supporting the arts at Fayerweather, and stay tuned for more updates about The Giver and the METG (including auditions on January 21!).
Rosie shared this concept at the METG contest with pride. They prepared a poster presentation featuring sketches, fabric swatches, research, and production photos, with all three cloaks displayed nearby. Speaking confidently, Rosie explained the meaning of “ingonyama nengwe ’namabala” from "Circle of Life": “In Zulu, this means ‘the lion wears the leopard spots,’” they shared, clarifying that leopard spots symbolize royalty and signify that the lion is a king. Rosie then directed the judges’ attention to the lining of the cloaks: leopard print. On the back of each cloak, Rosie explained that interlocking circles of colorful fabric represent the various animal inhabitants of the Pridelands — the “circle of life.” All animals are included, even the hyenas, despite the tension between them and the lions.
Rosie represented the story, their design, their school, and themselves with the confidence, joy, and intentionality we have come to expect from a Fayerweather student. Their hard work and creativity earned them 2nd place in the Middle School Excellence in Technical Theatre Contest. In addition to this exciting accolade, Rosie received a certificate and a small scholarship from METG, intended as “an investment in [their] future success as an artist,” with the hope that this resource will “strengthen [their] own capacity to produce work of a superior quality.”
And now, we look ahead to The Giver this spring. With a script rich in opportunities for powerful performances and unforgettable technical effects, we know that Rosie and their peers in the Unit will go above and beyond with their creativity, curiosity, and advocacy as young artists. We are so fortunate to create theatre in a generous and loving community — thank you for supporting the arts at Fayerweather, and stay tuned for more updates about The Giver and the METG (including auditions on January 21!).
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Emily Grove, Director of Extended Day
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Rosie with their costume designs for the Lion King KIDS and their poster for the METG Excellence in Technical Theatre Contest
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Rosie presents their costume designs to the METG judges
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Rosie presents their costume designs to the METG judges
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Rosie's costume designs for The Lion King KIDS
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Rosie's poster, including sketches, swatches, research, and production photos
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Fayerweather Street School | 765 Concord Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138 | 617-876-4746
Fayerweather is a private PreK, kindergarten, elementary and middle school. We engage each child’s intellect.