Throughout “It Was a Dark and Stormy Night,” goosebumps appeared up and down the audience’s arms. The frightening scenes were jolting, leaving the audience on the edge of their seats.

The play took place at the haunted Ye Old Wayside Inn, where many abnormal events occured. Foul weather brought out the dark side of an inn keeper who lured victims to the inn for “safety” from the storm. However, several characters were not who they claimed to be.

The drama club presented four showings of the play Nov. 29, Nov.30, and two Dec. 1. Both the cast and crew members had high expectations for the showings. However, the turnout was not as good as the actors had hoped it would be. This was a bit of a disappointment to the drama club because they put forth a lot of time and effort into the production.

Regardless of the smaller audience, many of the people who attended the play really enjoyed the show. Sophomore Raquel Gleicher said, “I was really eager for the intermission to end, so I could seea��the ending of the play.” Gleicher really appreciated the play because she loves a good mystery. The actors used a lot of emotion to add to the mysterious plot.

Emotion is key to a successful performance because it helps draw in the audience. A creative set is also appealing and attracts many audience members. The stage set up was intricate in design and the crew members worked very hard to create such a detailed set. The cobwebs and broken staircase added to the spooky atmosphere of the play.

The stage crew spent several days painting and building the sets. Freshman crew member Kate Horwich said, “The actors work hard with memorizing their lines, while the crew dedicates a lot of time to the sets, costumes and tech.”

Members of the drama club also spent countless hours finding the perfect costumes to fit the roles of each character. The costumes and props come from past RHS performances, personal supplies or are borrowed from other theaters. The lights and sound effects also contributed to the creepy effect.

This year, a new director stepped up to lead the RHS drama program. English teacher Dana Sato said, “This is my first year being director, but I have worked with the previous director for years.” Sato spent her own time to make sure everything went well. She is proud of all the actors because she knows how hard everyone worked.