Eva Pace and Rosemary O’Neill, Reporters
@espcourant
@RONeillCourant
If you have ever been at New Canaan High School after school hours, you’ve heard the booming voices of the NCHS theatre program coming from the auditorium. To senior, and diehard member of the high school theatre community, Berlin Charles, these rehearsals have become a staple of his routine.
Berlin has loved being on stage ever since he was in elementary school, and his greatest motivator has been none other than his mom. “I would watch my mom sing in church and perform,” he said. “I always felt as if I belonged on stage.”
However, theatre proved to be much different from what he had experienced during Sunday mass. “I always liked to sing, so I wanted to do theatre because I thought it was all singing,” Berlin said. “Fortunately, it ended up involving a lot of other things like acting and dancing, which I really learned to love.”
As a senior, Berlin has a lot on his plate. Right now, he’s rehearsing for the theatre program’s upcoming musical, Into The Woods, in which he plays the ‘Big Bad Wolf’. Berlin also participated in the most recent theatre fundraising gala. “I opened the first number and closed the second number at the gala, which was really cool,” he said.
Even though Berlin has been in theatre for four years, his theatre schedule is busy and always changing. “Most of the time rehearsal depends on the role you have, but everyone starts off with vocal rehearsals before staging an act,” he said. “For regular scenes it depends on how the director wants to do it, but Into the Woods has been different, it’s just crazy.”
Senior Audrey Kirkpatrick is one of Berlin’s best friends, and also plays a big role in NCHS Theatre. Audrey emphasizes
the need for close friendships within a stressful hobby like theatre. “We both have our moments of freak-out and stress, so we’re both there for each other to talk and calm our nerves,” Audrey said. “We keep each other sane, which allows us to move forward as performers.”
Audrey admires the development of Berlin’s skill as a performer throughout the years. “Berlin has gotten larger roles every year, and it was amazing to see someone that talented so young,” Audrey said. “For some people it takes time to develop a talent, but he has been skilled from the get-go.”
In addition to his friends, Berlin sees his stage manager, Dee Alexander, as a huge inspiration as he takes his steps into the professional world of theatre. “Everything gets done because Dee’s an excellent motivator,” Berlin said. “She pushes me to be as efficient as she is, and live at the professional pace that she does.”
Because he’s been acting for so long, Berlin and the rest of the students have become very close, despite the unbalanced female-to-male ratio on stage. “It makes it easier when you’re close with the guys and girls of the program,” Berlin said. “I’ve been doing theatre with these kids since the seventh grade so the balance doesn’t make a difference to me
Despite this setback, Berlin has high hopes for his future in acting. “I want to act in college to make sure I know this is what I want to do with my life, and that it’s not just a high school hobby,” he said. “It would be awesome to have a great career, and it’s important to remember that you don’t just have to be on Broadway to be a successful actor.”
