Edgewood High School's drama group, the Masqued Crafters presents S. E. Hinton's The Outsiders in a production to benefit Josh Owens, an EHS 2008 graduate who is undergoing cancer treatment. The director is Elizabeth Perney.
Author Hinton wrote the book that the play is based on because she didn't find "the drive-in social jungle ... the behind-the-scenes politicking that goes on in big schools, the cruel social system," or the teenagers who lived in those settings in the literature of the early sixties.
Edgewood senior Courtney New plays Johnny one of the "greasers" in the society that pits his group against the wealthier "soc's." She's a four year veteran of the Masqued Crafters and says "being in the theatre group has given me some great experiences a really good group of friends. I haven't decided where I'll go to college, but I am hoping to continue with some form of theatre."
ReAnna Headdy is also a senior and has been in shows since her freshman year. She plays two of the women in the show. "The parts are kind of close together, but it's easier than it sounds," is what she says. Headdy thinks that being in the Masqued Crafters has helped her to be a more open and lively person. "I'm planning on going to a Bible College, but the one I'm looking at has a nice theatre," she concludes.
The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton
Directed by Elizabeth Perney
Edgewood High School
November 19, 20 and 21, 2009