Tag Archives: #highschooltheater

Plonkies

Text: “In High School, I was in drama club. Every time before a show, about 15 minutes before a show, everyone would gather around to hear our director’s speech to send us off. When it got down to 5 minutes, our stage managers – that being our Production Stage Manager and two Assistant Stage Managers would stand up on chairs in the center of the crowd. Their speech is different from the directors’; it was more centered towards hype and getting all the positive energy into your systems. They would start with a drum roll…and as that beat rolled through the crowd, they would spin their arms in circles and YELL, “It’sssssss going! Itsssssss going! ITSSSSSSS PLONKIES!” Everyone would say the Plonkies part with them, and then all hype, we would run off to places, whether we were in the crew or cast. I’m not sure how it originated, but it has been a long-running tradition since I joined my freshman year. Plonkies is pretty much a funny way to say places. It would be said at the beginning of each of the three shows we had over the weekend; the last one was always said cause it meant the last show, but it was fun nonetheless.”

Context: A high school theater tradition that is celebrated by both members of the cast and crew and performed by students. OK was a tech student and saw and participated in this tradition for all four years in high school, for each of the eight shows over that time. There would be two shows every year. It is always performed by the Stage Managers.

Analysis: The mix of the drum roll, the yelling, and everyone joining in creates this shared burst of energy that hypes people up and calms nerves at the same time. There has always been a wide variety of traditions within theaters, most relating to ghosts, but it is interesting to see a different kind, one that includes both the crew and the cast together. Overall, it’s a good example of how inside jokes and traditions can build a sense of community and make stressful moments feel exciting instead of overwhelming. Knowing it has been a tradition passed down for generations of theater students makes the sense of community even stronger; it’s a bond of the present and past students.

Theater Ghost Spotlight Ritual

Nationality: American
Age: 22
Occupation: Pastry Chef
Residence: Napa, CA
Performance Date: April 20, 20202
Primary Language: English

Here is a transcription of my (CB) interview with my informant (AH).

CB: “Can you tell me about that ritual for theater ghosts?”

AH: “Uh so have you ever heard of the ghost light?”

CB: “No”

AH: “So its tradition in theater that when you shut down at the end of the night that you leave a single light, its gotta have leads on it traditionally, and it even goes back to shakespearean times, you know they would leave a candle out or a lantern out so that the ghosts wouldn’t burn down the stage, but then, you know, sometimes the candle would burn down the stage.  But you leave a light out in the middle of the stage, and so the rest of the theater is completely black except for that light in the middle of the stage. And so the tradition is that you leave a spotlight out in the middle of the stage so that ghosts of theater past are able to perform for their audience.” 

CB: “That’s really interesting. Where did you first hear about that?”

AH: “I heard about it in theater at my high school. My theater technician teacher taught us that one”

CB: “And so, why do you think that people share it?”

AH: “It’s a very important tradition. Rumor has it that if you don’t leave a light out, its bad luck and your theater will be doomed to never have a successful show again.”

CB: “What does the ritual mean to you?”

AH: “Um, it’s more just something that I do because it was something that I was taught to do and less because it means anything to me. I think that it’s important to the theater community as a whole to put the ghost light out. It’s a superstition, and it kinda calms a certain type of feeling. And I find, but I’m not this way, but theater people in general tend to be more superstitious than your average individual.” 

Background:

My informant has spent many years actively involved in theater programs, and attended a high school with a very active program. There are tons of stories of theater ghosts, and the tradition can be seen going back to ancient times. With the stories come different rituals to appease the ghosts and protect their theaters. My informant has shared with me varying different stories about theater ghosts which she believed in to different degrees. She expressed that she didn’t completely believe in this ritual, but that she often partook in it out of respect for the community and the sentiments associated with it.

Context:

My informant called me with stories prepared after hearing that I had been interviewing other members of our family for folklore. We had a fun and casual conversation, exchanging versions of stories that we had heard growing up.

Thoughts:

I believe that many people within the theater community are attracted to superstitions because success in the arts can be very unpredictable. By working to appease the ghosts and performing traditional rituals, the theater community is able to reclaim a sense of agency over their success. The ritual also provides a scapegoat in case that a show doesn’t go well. The members would be able to avoid criticism of their personal performance, and instead blame a ghost. Theater is an incredibly old profession, and because of that traditions that have died out elsewhere are still passed down within theater communities. My informant cited the ritual as going back as far as Shakespearan times. I believe the ritual was likely a part of a larger theme of beliefs in ghosts, hauntings, and traditions that can appease them that are no longer popular. 

For another variation of a ghost spotlight see Andy Wright’s article “The Story Behind the Ritual that Still Haunts Broadway” published on Atlas Obsurca. https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/the-story-behind-the-ritual-that-still-haunts-broadway

The Curse of the Scottish play

Nationality: American/Greek
Age: 18
Occupation: student
Residence: DC
Performance Date: 04/22/20
Primary Language: English
Language: Greek

G: You can’t say Macbeth during any rehearsals or theater-related entourage. I think this has something to do with the play being a huge tragedy. When my high school teacher explained this to me he said: “well it’s because by the end of the play everyone is dead.” And you have to run 5 laps around the entire theatre if you or someone else says it to get rid of the bad energy. One time my theatre teacher said it during rehearsal and then he fell through the stage.

According to the informant, saying “Macbeth” puts a curse on the entire production and cast. It seems that so many people believe this because there have been true accounts of accidents or unfortunate events after saying it. Some are even lethal as the informant explained that their teacher fell through the stage and hurt himself almost immediately after saying it. There also seems to be damage control measures put in place to protect theatrical productions against the curse as the informant mentioned taking 5 laps around the theater. It’s possible that the violent nature of the play is what has caused the superstitions and concerns. Macbeth is all about death and destruction so it’s understandable why this play is now seen as a dark symbol. I have personally experienced bad luck during a show after a cast member said the words. As a result, a number of things went wrong on opening night. People forgot their lines, made the wrong entrances, forgot their props, costumes broke, etc… It was disastrous. In conclusion, whether the superstition is true or not, it is best to not refer to the Scottish play. 

For another account of this curse, please Martin Harrison’s (1998). The Language of Theatre. Routledge. p. 239.