“Once in a Lifetime”, a play written by Moss Hart and George S. Kaufman, was presented at Oakton High School on November 10-12 as the first semester project for students in Drama 3 and 4. These talented actors and actresses brought this old-fashioned, satirical play to life while interpreting the characters of the vaudeville troupers in the 1920s. Hunter Carrico (12), Anna Goodin (11), and Rob Warrick (12) played the three main characters – George Lewis, May Daniels, and Jerry Hyland, respectively. “Once in a Lifetime” described this vaudeville trio’s journey to Hollywood after the talking pictures revolution (when black and white movies went from silent films to films with voices – what we have today), hoping to become rich and famous, and how they ended up as vocal coaches for a major producer.

Kelly Biladeau, a senior at Oakton, played Miss Leighton in “Once in a Lifetime.” It was Biladeau’s second fall production at Oakton, and she loved everything about it. “We had a big cast which was super intimidating at first, especially because most of the people in Drama 3 and 4 didn’t really know each other. But we spent so much time on the show, so eventually we all got really close. It was also really fun because the play takes place in the 1920’s, so all of the makeup and costumes were entertaining” said Biladeau. Other Drama 3 students, such as Aria Smith and Jessica Sarmiento, had a blast performing this musical especially because they enjoyed the opportunity to roller-skate across the stage as Cigarette Girls #1 and #2.

The audience seemed to love this fall production. A few students felt the plot was a bit hard to follow, but most enjoyed the vast range of characters and the entertaining aspects of the 1920’s scenes. “It was the first play I’ve been to at Oakton and I had a great time. I liked the story and I thought it was really funny and interesting,” said Delaney Connolly, a senior at Oakton.

Although it was her first leading role in a play at Oakton, Goodin was the great choice to perform as May Daniels in “Once in a Lifetime”. She has been in Drama since freshman year, as theatre has always been an extremely important part of her life. She was excited about this play as the first semester project for Drama 3 and 4, and immediately she knew that she wanted to audition for a larger role. “My character is sort of like the rough, tough cream puff. She’s very serious and she resembles an entrepreneur. She’s the boss of the group, and she can definitely hold her own with homage. It’s cool because it wasn’t common to see really strong women like her in the 1920’s”, said Goodin. Carrico, Warrick, and Goodin all seemed to fit beautifully as the main characters in this production. Carrico’s character, George Lewis, is the naive jokester of the bunch, and Warrick’s character, Jerry Hyland, is another main character who pushes the group to travel to Hollywood.

The main premise of “Once in a Lifetime” is that this group of three moves to Hollywood to make it into the “big time”, and they end up starting a voice school there, teaching actors how to speak in “talking pictures”. “The most important message this play conveys is that continuing to work hard at something, even if it doesn’t come out the way you expected, can have a lot of value,” said Goodin. The group moves out to Hollywood for one specific reason, but it turns into something else entirely. They all were motivated to continue working hard at something they felt strongly about, and it ended up being worth it in the end. Additionally, “Once in a Lifetime” suggests staying true to who you are – with Goodin as a “rough tough cream puff”, she can’t become something she’s not just because society wants her to.

“‘Once in a Lifetime’ was definitely one of the best things I’ve done in my high school career. The plays and musicals take up a lot of my time, but they’re definitely worth it, and they’re definitely worth seeing”, said Goodin. Students should always try to come see the plays and musicals at Oakton not only because they’re entertaining, but also because the theatre students work incredibly hard on developing and performing them, and these plays even have some inspiring messages embedded in the stories.