News & Events

Senior Charlie D. with the cast of professional actors who performed his play at the Vermont Young Playwrights Festival on May 17, 2023

April 20, 2023 ~ 5:30 p.m.

In the fall, several students participated in a playwriting elective with the hope of creating an original 10-minute one-act play. When everyone returned from our winter recess, students came together to produce and perform "The Album" by Roxanne (grade 11) and "All These Weeks" by Ruby (grade 12). "The Album" is composed of a series of monologues in which three people share memories of their own version of a man who’s passed away. In "All These Weeks," four friends in a high school get caught in gossip and misunderstanding and have to decide whether they will reconcile.

Each year Rock Point School participates in the Vermont Young Playwrights' Project, in conjunction with the Vermont Young Writers and Vermont Stage Company. As part of this project, a professional playwright visits the school in the fall for a series of workshops on playwriting. Students produce original 10-minute plays during these workshops and working with our English Teacher, Abbey Baker.

We are so incredibly proud of our students for all the hard work and creativity that went into the school plays this year. The performance on February 22nd showcased two student written plays, a Shakespearean monologue, and a one-act written by Christopher Durang. Students lead every part of the production from costumes to sets to lights and more. Our two student writers, Jeff and Amaris, also directed their plays, helping bring their visions to life on stage.

After two playwriting workshops with local playwright Mary Beth McNulty, two students continued to edit and polish their plays for performance. We are thrilled to announce our One-Act play performance will take place on February 20th at 6:30 pm in our school library.

Working with the Vermont Young Playwrights' Project, Rock Point students have begun their journey toward writing and producing annual school plays. Students had the chance to work with local playwright Mary Beth McNulty for two full-day workshops this winter. In November they played acting games, learned the techniques of playwriting, and brainstormed ideas based on prompts from Mary Beth. Students left the workshop with the beginnings of their ten-minute plays in the works, and then worked with our English teacher, Abbey Baker, to make progress.

Each year, we gather before everyone heads off for November vacation to celebrate, express gratitude, and enjoy a feast. The Thanksgiving service is designed by students with help from staff members. This year, students read poems they selected, shared traditions, and thanksgivings. One student brought in Christmas crackers, his own family tradition, which meant we ended the service with everyone wearing paper crowns!

On May 3rd a group of Rock Point School students headed to the Flynn Center for the Performing Arts for a day of theater workshops and performances! Our students have participated in the Vermont Young Playwrights' Project for almost twenty years and we were honored to be part of the festival again this spring. In the fall, students began working on writing original ten-minute plays inspired by workshops with a professional playwright. They continued to edit their plays before submitting them to the festival for selection.