DramaFest is just around the corner! This yearly CHS drama tradition is beloved by many but not nearly as well-known and appreciated as it deserves to be. DramaFest is a festival of one-act plays completely directed, produced, and often written by your peers. It is in some respects a “lower-stakes” version of the larger mainstage productions our theater department puts on. Senior drama student and former DramaFest participant Kai LaBuda offers more insight as to why DramaFest is so valuable. The large seasonal productions – like A Midsummer Night’s Dream – cost a lot of money to put on. Most notably, the performing rights to the script must be bought, and this can be very expensive. Even if money was not an issue, since these plays are well-established, well-known, and fairly long, they require a lot of labor. For this reason, Ms. Cummins (CHS’s theater teacher) takes on directing responsibilities and most larger roles – behind the stage and on it – are filled by upperclassmen.