Hillgrove Drama Charts the Stars in Silent Sky By: Maylene Michel

Hillgrove's drama department recently staged Silent Sky, a play that follows "the true story of Henrietta Leavitt and her team… battling for recognition in a man's world of early 20th century astronomy" on the report of the Utah Shakespeare Festival. Further explained by Georgia Southern University, Silent Sky is a “semi-fictionalized story… [that] follows astronomy research assistant Henrietta Leavitt… who works at the Harvard College Observatory in the early 1900s, where she isn’t allowed to… express an original idea… she joins a group of women “computers,” charting the stars for a renowned astronomer who calculates projects in “girl hours” and has no time for the women’s probing theories.” According to Hillgrove’s Margaret Leavitt actress Iliana Barber, this play sheds light on the “stories back then that people don’t know about where women deserve the credit for things that men take credit for,” and encourages viewers to “do some research and understand that women have made so many discoveries that have propelled our world into the future that people don’t realize.” Moreover, Camryn Cade, who plays the main role of Henrietta Leavitt in Hillgrove’s play, views her character as “very dedicated, very ambitious, and… one of perseverance and willpower…”. Hillgrove’s theatricals were hugely spirited about this performance, showcasing how important this play is to the school and its drama program!

To have the means to put on this complex play, Hillgrove's theatre students were required to rehearse intensely. On the report of Malcom Thoms, another member of the Silent Sky cast, “we didn’t know if we had the rights to be able to put on the play in full… so rehearsals were a bit chaotic because of that, and also having to order in props and costumes because we couldn't make them ourselves…”.  Even so, the school’s resilient drama students were able to clean it up during rehearsals and produce a sensational show! 

Although, this wasn’t luck – Hillgrove’s student actors were able to get through demanding rehearsals because of their pure love for theatre. Namely, Camryn Cade doesn't just act for fun; she insightfully reveals that “the feeling I get from watching movies and theatre alone is enough to make me want to be able to do that for other people. I feel so seen and inspired… the inflection in your voice and the movement and the way you're looking at somebody, that really fills me to examine how we act and what that means and the grand scheme of our relationships and how we move in the world.” With so many of the school’s actors’ mindsets like this, frenzied rehearsals are only a minor setback.

All things considered, viewers have all the more reason to appreciate Hillgrove’s acting efforts. Their actors did their rendition of Silent Sky justice, and Henrietta Leavitt would be proud!