The production consists of 30 cast members and 40 crew members
Don’t miss Pioneer Theatre Guild’s production of “All American Boys” to be held Jan. 26-28 in the newly renovated Little Theater at Pioneer High School.
Based on a novel by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely, the play tells the story of two teenagers and how they deal with racism and police brutality in their community.
The production consists of 30 cast members and 40 crew members.
Tickets are $10 for students, seniors 65+ Seniors, and PHS staff; and $15 for adults.
Performance Dates:
● Friday, January 26, 7 p.m.
● Saturday, January 27, 2 p.m.
● Saturday, January 27, 7 p.m.
● Sunday, January 28, 2 p.m.
“All American Boys” contains strong language and adult content.
Senior Annika Polk, who plays Shannon Pushcart, joined PTG last year in “You on the Moors Now.” She describes Shannon as “generally a more silly character; someone seen as the funny and hyper person in the group. Throughout the show, though, his optimism seems to dim in response to Rashad’s hospitalization. He’s worried for his friend, and above all else, he feels hurt because he understands and relates to Rashad’s situation as someone who experienced police brutality as well.”
Annika hopes that people will “watch this show and understand the perspective of how it feels to be Black in America. I think a lot of people tend to look at media like “All American Boys” and take it as a threat, or like we’re trying to villainize people who aren’t Black. That isn’t the case, though. We’re just trying to share our story and make others aware of the difficulties we face so that everyone as humans can work toward a better community where we all understand and accept each other.”
Senior Addie Tussing has been involved in PTG since her sophomore year and plays Ma. She explains her character as “a single mother with two sons, who can be summed up in one word: exhausted… Throughout the story, she becomes more fearful, maybe even controlling of her family. It all comes from a place of love, however, but I think she struggles to decide right and wrong, and instead, tries to ignore the situation.”
Addie is looking forward to the show because “this show is something new for PTG, with both its subject matter and directional style, and I’m really excited for the audience to see it.”
Box office will open at the door one hour before performances for cash and check ticket sales.
The technical crews (stage management, sets, sound, lights, props, makeup, costumes, paint) consist of students from across the Ann Arbor district and play a crucial role in the production. Senior Audrey Rosenberg is one of the co-crew heads for the show’s costume crew. She has been involved in the costumes crew since her freshman year and is excited for this show because the modern outfits required are different from what she has worked on previously.
She explains: “The modern setting allows me to incorporate my own knowledge of current fashion into my work, and I don’t need to do research on historical fashion.” One piece she especially enjoyed making was a “librarian-esque glasses chain” for Mrs. Fitzgerald, one of the characters in the show. Rosenberg states: “I was really excited to have the opportunity to combine my love for jewelry-making with my love for costume design.”
Junior Cecilia Lodge Russell is the paint crew head and has also been involved with PTG since her freshman year. She explains that one unique part of the set of this show is the simplicity of it.
“Instead of painting a lot of different textures, most set pieces are painted with uniform bricks,” she said. “The scenery sort of takes the backseat in favor of highlighting the actors’ performances and the storytelling.”
She also explains that the crumbling bricks portray the “old” and “industrial” feel of the high school setting and that “it’s been interesting to develop techniques to weather the bricks using sponges, spray bottles, and water.”
Shane Collins and Cameron Graham, both PTG alumni, return to Pioneer to co-direct “All American Boys.”
Graham states: “It’s such a cool experience to return to my old high school in a different role, and alongside my friend and co-director, Shane Collins (who I met doing theatre at Pioneer).” He continues, “I’m most excited for the audience to see and experience the talent of the diverse cast of this show. My hope is that it serves as a true reflection of the community these students are a part of, and lets others know that there is a space for them regardless of who they are.”
Graham also explains that he and Collins hope that the play will “highlight the humanity of victims of police brutality.”
“Much of the time their names are forgotten or lost in a sea of other similar events,” he said. “In recent years with the addition of the internet, they’ve become symbols of police violence or hashtags on the Internet. In both circumstances, it’s easy to lose sight of the actual person behind the event. Their lives amount to much more than a moment of violence that they were not responsible for. So by giving them a voice and really listening to the stories of their lives, focusing on who and what they love, and the qualities that make up who they are, we grow a fuller sense of who they are as a person. This allows us to truly honor them and give them back the integrity and humanity that was taken from them.”
Both Collins and Graham recognize that this is a difficult story to tell and not a comfortable one to watch. They both cite the importance of feeling uncomfortable in bringing about change. As Collins explains it, “uncomfortability leads to movement because there is a want to find a solution towards not feeling uncomfortable.” He continues: “This is not an easy story to tell. It’s inevitably going to make people uncomfortable, and it should.” He explains that one of their goals with the play is to start a culture of change in PTG and for PTG to become a more diverse, inclusive community.
“This play is for Black students in a white space to create a dialogue with their peers… and for their peers to then be open to receiving this critical information and make choices that will create a culture of allyship and growth so that we can all show up for each other when it’s not easy to … I’m most excited for the audience to see these students challenge themselves with this play, and in doing so hopefully challenge their friends and family to keep a conversation going past this play.”
As Addie Tussing puts it: “Each character has a unique and important story to tell in this play, and I can’t wait for opening night! Let’s sell out the Little Theater!”
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