Calista Motisher is 15 years old and is in 9th grade. She attends St. Aloysius Catholic School. Calista has been participating in theater for 6 years and has been in 17 shows. Twelve of these shows have been with HYT. She would like to thank her family, Cassie, and everyone who made this show possible. She is so excited to be in kindergarten again!
Fox Roberts-Zibbel is 15 years old and is in 10th grade. They attend Ohio Virtual Academy. Fox has been participating in theater for 10 years and has been in more than 23 shows. All of these shows have been with HYT. They are most excited to be challenged with monologues. They would like to share this story: when I was younger and saw “Kindergarten” performed originally, I was in awe and I am so grateful that I get to be in the cast this time around. They would like to thank their brother, Leo.
Violet Grossman is 15 years old and is in 10th grade. She attends Bowling Green Middle School. Violet has been participating in theater for 8 years and has been in 13 shows. Twelve of these shows have been with HYT. She is most excited to have a big monologue and has loved becoming closer to her castmates. She would like to thank her mother for being her best friend and biggest supporter and her castmates for putting a smile on her face.
Jonah Truman is 15 and in the 10th grade at Ohio Virtual Academy. He has been doing theatre for 9 years and has done a total of 11 shows, 10 with HYT. He really enjoys speaking directly to the audience and being able to take them on a story. He loves working with this cast and bouncing off of them in the scenes they have together. He would like to thank his parents for being the best and Fox for “roping him into this”. He would like to add that this space is super old, but he loves it.
Aidan Thomas is 14 and a freshman at Bowling Green High School. He has been doing theatre for 7 years and has done 22 shows, 14 with HYT. He is most excited to take on a more serious role than he has had before and to make this show unique from the first time it was performed. He would like to thank anyone who has supported him and helped encourage his love of theatre.
Carson Huyghe is 13 years old and is in 7th grade. He attends Gateway Middle School. Carson has been participating in theater for 2 years and has been in 4 shows. This is his second show with HYT. He is especially thankful for being a part of such a supportive cast. He would like to thank his mom, dad, and family for encouraging him throughout his theater journey.
Liam Rogel is 15 years old and is in 10th grade. He attends Toledo School for the Arts. Liam has been participating in theater for 10 years and has been in 33 shows. Lots of these shows have been with HYT. He is most excited to be silly and good around. He would like to thank Keith Guion and Cassie Greenlee for guiding him in theatre and his mom for taking him to that audition many years ago. Wonga, Wonga, WONGA!
Avery Hensley is 13 years old and is in 7th grade. She attends Bowling Green Christian Academy. She has been participating in theater for less than a year. She has done 4 shows, 3 with HYT. Avery is excited to learn to act with more emotion. She would like to thank her mom and dad.
Rose Walters is 18 and is a senior at Bowling Green High School. She has been doing theatre for 13 years and has done 65 shows in her career. She is excited to be reprising her roles from the first time she did this show 8 years ago and would like to thank Cassie, Leo, and her family and friends.
Maggie Otley is 14 and in the 8th grade at Toledo School for the Arts. She has been doing theatre for 5 years and has done 14 shows, 8 of which with HYT. She is most excited for the Cinderella scene and would like to thank her parents and sister for helping her memorize her lines and her dog Stella for licking and encouraging her.
Claire Nelson is 13 years old and is in 7th grade. She attends Bowling Green Middle School. Claire has been participating in theater for 6 years and has been in 13 shows. Eleven of these shows have been with HYT. She would like to thank everyone that is a part of HYT for making such an amazing experience possible.
Mali Cloeter is a homeschooled 12th grader. She has been in 11 shows with HYT, and was last seen sword fighting, being poisoned, and pretending her name was not Julia in HYT's production of Shakesplosion. Some of her current favorite ways to spend her time are singing, ballroom dancing, embroidering plant-oriented designs, and making big plans for her gardens. As helpfully pointed out by Liam, this will be the second play in a row in which she gets to stand alone onstage and talk about death.
Khloie Peppers is 14 and in the 9th grade at Bowling Green High School. This is her first show ever and she is excited to have a monologue and get to be a kindergarten teacher. She would like to thank everyone, but especially her friend Calista for encouraging her to do this. She is thankful for this show to be her first because “this cast is amazing!”
Drew Thomas is 17 years old and is a senior at Bowling Green High School. He has been doing theatre for 7 years and has done over 30 shows, 15 with Horizon Youth Theatre. He saw this show when he was younger and is excited to be performing it now because he loved it so much. He would like to thank his mom and dad, Cassie Greenlee, and anyone else who has supported him along the way. He is also an active member of 4H, FFA, and sings in the BGHS choir.
CAST LIST
Act 1
“Yes, Of Course I Can!”
Narrators: Mali Cloeter, Drew Thomas, Rose Walters
Full Ensemble
“Kindergarten Song”
Featured Soloists: Mali Cloeter, Drew Thomas, Rose Walters
Full Ensemble
“Cinderella”
Narrators: Calista Motisher, Maggie Otley
Teacher: Khloie Peppers
Norman: Liam Rogel
Full Ensemble
“Showdown in Grand Junction” (directed by Drew Thomas)
Narrators: Avery Hensley, Fox Roberts-Zibbel
Father: Aidan Thomas
Daughter: Rose Walters
Impromptu Committee of Wise Men: Carson Huyghe, Liam Rogel, Drew Thomas, Jonah Truman
“Hide and Seek”
Narrator: Violet Grossman
Full Ensemble
“Donnie the Leaf Raker”
Narrator: Jonah Truman
Donnie: Carson Huyghe
Donnie’s Voice: Fox Roberts-Zibbel
Man in Scene: Aidan Thomas
Wife: Rose Walters
“Stuff in the Sink”
Narrators: Mali Cloeter, Calista Motisher
Teens: Avery Hensley, Claire Nelson, Maggie Otley, Liam Rogel
Full Ensemble
“Solomon Islands”
Narrator: Drew Thomas
Screamers: Violet Grossman, Carson Huyghe, Khloie Peppers, Jonah Truman
“Problems and Inconveniences”
Narrator: Fox Roberts-Zibbel
Man in Scene: Aidan Thomas
Sigmund: Rose Walters
“Reflect the Light”
Featured Soloists: Calista Motisher, Aidan Thomas
Act 2
“Uh Oh”
Full Ensemble
“Spider” (directed by Drew Thomas)
Narrators: Khloie Peppers, Liam Rogel
Neighbor: Calista Motisher
Spider: Claire Nelson
“Beethoven”
Narrator: Rose Walters
Neighbor: Violet Grossman
“Larry Walters”
Narrators: Avery Hensley, Carson Huyghe, Claire Nelson, Aidan Thomas
Larry: Liam Rogel
“What Do You Do?”
Narrators: Mali Cloeter, Maggie Otley, Drew Thomas, Jonah Truman
“The Briefcase”
Narrator: Fox Roberts-Zibbel
Range Rover Driver: Liam Rogel
Neighbor Lady: Violet Grossman
Person in Scene: Claire Nelson
“Howard”
Interviewer: Drew Thomas
Interviewee: Rose Walters
“Christmas/Valentine’s Day” (directed by Drew Thomas)
Narrator: Mali Cloeter
Woman in Scene: Violet Grossman
Wife: Khloie Peppers
Fred: Jonah Truman
Nurse: Calista Motisher
“Tomb with a View”
Narrator: Mali Cloeter
“Are There Any Questions?”
Narrator: Mali Cloeter
Dr. Papaderos: Drew Thomas
Full Ensemble
Directors Note
When I was in high school, I took a class called Humanities. We spent one of our first class periods discussing and debating the purpose of art in the world. Art, for the purposes of this class, was a term with a broad definition. Painting, sculpture, music, literature, theatre. Anything that could be considered a creative endeavor. Our teacher wanted us, all of 15, 16, and 17, to answer a somewhat impossible question: What is art supposed to do? What is its purpose in the world?
Our world is a bit of a mess right now. Whatever your politics, whatever your beliefs, whatever your life philosophy, whatever your belief system, I think we can all agree that our world is a bit of a mess right now. It was true when I first directed Kindergarten for HYT six and a half years ago, and it’s true today. And I find myself, as I did then, constantly turning to the art I love for hope and guidance.
What Robert Fulghum does in his writings, and therefore through this play, is ask us to return to a simpler time in our lives, to remember the rules we learned in kindergarten, and he challenges us to apply those rules to our adult lives, in the hopes that doing so can improve the state of things around us.
It’s easy as adults to be cynical and say that rules like Share and Play Fair are fine for the classroom, but too simplistic to be of use in the real world. I disagree. Thinking like a kindergartener may not solve all the world’s problems, but on an individual level, it sure can help, and isn’t that where everything starts?
If you hurt someone, say you’re sorry, and also remember that yelling at living things can kill the spirit in them. Learn some and think some every day, and take time to figure out if you’re dealing with a problem or an inconvenience. Be aware of wonder, and let the wonder you see from others remind you that it’s okay to let go if what you’re stubbornly holding onto no longer makes sense.
The conclusion that my high school class came to about art is that it’s never meant to do just one thing. If we entertain you tonight, then we’ve done our job. But it is my sincere hope that we do more than merely entertain you. I hope we inspire you. I hope we make you think. I hope we give you something meaningful to take away, and I hope that the life we have brought to Robert Fulghum’s words stays with you. The world, messy as it is, is our classroom, and we can make it a brighter place, if we stop and remember to reflect the light into the dark places we see every day.
