As the pandemic continues, schools are figuring out ways to maintain clubs, extracurriculars, and more while still abiding social distancing; Hills’ school musical is no exception. This year, musical director Allison Andresini decided to put on a virtual variety musical, a compilation of various songs different students will sing that have no correlation with one another.  

Andresini wanted to incorporate comedy sketches to accompany the songs which will mostly circle around the topic of quarantine, making light of this bleak situation. With doing so, Andresini asked some of the students in the musical program if they would be interested in participating themselves or reaching out to other students at Hills who would be interested in writing sketches or, more generally, comedy.

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“I’m in the show and was able to find out through Alison,” Hills junior Scianna Scott explained. “I really love to write, and have been writing short stories for a long time, so I’ve been trying to immerse myself in writing however I can.” 

“I love getting to work with these people,” Hills junior Riley Solomon expressed. “Everyone has been so creative and funny and I also like getting to see the process behind what the show is going to be so it’s interesting to see how the writing process actually works.”

Andresini has held multiple meetings with Scott, Solomon, and the rest of the Writers Room to bounce off ideas, create sketches and jokes, and help students learn the many integral parts of what goes into comedy. “It’s a good outlet for humor in a sort of weird time,” Andresini said. 

On Friday, Nov. 13, Andresini invited professional screenwriter Sarah Grodsky to the meeting to teach students more about the technical aspect of comedy. Grodsky explained factors such as the importance of the unexpected, tension breaking, establishing a sense of community, and the Rule of Three which presents a comical sketch in three beats, three acts, and three minutes. 

“I was super impressed with students’ ideas and openness,” Grodsky said, “They’re fantastic little sponges! I can’t wait to watch their work.” 

The inspiration for a lot of the comedy and sketches Andresini and Grodsky have written and taught about were from the hit comedy show, “Saturday Night Live,” which also had a similar writing process to the Hills Writers’ Room: pitch, debate, cast, write; then it’s off to the actors to bring it to life. 

“I thought why not bring in students to write things that will make them laugh?” Andresini explained when asked about the origin of forming the Writers’ Room. “It’s a good opportunity to express themselves as much as they can.”

And now, after four meetings of discussion, ideas, and laughter, the team is reading to start drafting their scripts and sending them out to the actors of this year’s show which will be called “Face-Time Continuum: A Virtual Variety Show.” 

When asked if she would be willing to do this again, Scott answered, “Absolutely! I think it’s so fun.” Solomon replied similarly, saying the Writers’ Room has been “really informative, fun, and rewarding.”

Andresini was asked a similar question: would she form another Writers’ Room in the years to come, even after the pandemic is over?

“We did something sort of like this with ‘Under Pressure,’ and I didn’t expect students to be writing a show again so soon,” Andresini explained. “But, I guess in any way the students want this process to continue, I am always open to it and to have a place to have writers work on their own craft.”