The Chronicles of Jane, Book Seven
(The Dreaded Term Paper)

Jane, a teen-ager with no lack of confidence in herself, has assembled her friends and followers to retell the story of one of her greatest challenges: The Dreaded Term Paper. Can she defeat her teacher, time, sleepiness, procrastination, and her evil brother Stewart and finish her term paper in one night? Of course she can! She's Jane!

"I thought it was one of the funniest plays the drama team has done yet. I felt like it was me procrastinating, with everything holding me back from writing a paper."
~ Kirsten Schuler '04

"I laughed 'til it hurt."
~ Polly Jeffers (Rachael '05)

"What a lot of fun – it was hilarious. What they were able to do with such a simple set – with the kids as the furniture and walls – was really creative, and fun to watch."
~ Margaret Martin, Associate Director of Admission

The Wolfeboro community was recently treated to a high-spirited performance of this delightful short comedy by a dedicated cast of Brewster Academy players. The story is a simple one: Jane, a typical teenager with a very high opinion of herself, goes through her book of stories and picks one to re-enact for this evening's performance. She chooses to tell about the time she put off writing The Dreaded Term Paper until the night before the paper was due. Her friends and followers (the Groupies) portray her bedroom walls, the furniture, her computer and power cord, her desk, her chair, and even Jane herself, as in the case of her friend poor hapless Norman. When Jane speaks, which she does throughout as the narrator, Norman mouths the same words, an entertaining process to watch.

Jane battles in turn the personifications of Procrastination, Sleepiness, Time, and the Nymph of Slumber, and finally her brother, the Evil Stewart, but manages to overcome these obstacles and finish her paper just in time. "There were things in the play that everyone could relate to in their own life," said Margaret Martin.

It was a delight to watch the melodramatic reactions of the actors to the happenings on stage. Particularly fun were the facial expressions of Trevor Colligan of Brookfield, who played the power cord – he had few lines but entertained the audience well with his droll looks. The part of Jane was a demanding one that Ashley Bilodeau of South Yarmouth, Mass., performed well, and believably, with high energy and emotion. The cast's antics ensured that members of the audience left with huge grins on their faces at the conclusion of the performance. Other local students in this production included Greg Donovan and Sara Hodges of Tuftonboro, and Erica Reithel of Wolfeboro.