One night, six performances, secret resistances, crazy cat killers, and magical realms are only part of what students can expect to see in St. Nicholas Hall this spring. 

Lakeside’s yearly tradition of one-act plays, or Circus!, takes place on May 12, 13, and 14. Though the plays are known for being student-written and student-directed, they weren’t always this way. When Circus! first started in 2014, the plays were student-directed but not student-written. The next year, Lakeside introduced its first student-written play. In 2016, under the Young Playwrights Program, a professional actor worked with students at Lakeside and other schools for ten weeks as they drafted plays. Though the program was discontinued after the pandemic, Drama 4 students had the opportunity to write their own plays for Circus. “Getting up three nights of Circus is really energetic, really fast-paced,” says Alban Dennis, teacher of the Drama 4 class, which writes the Circus! plays. 

To learn more about each play, Tatler asked each director for the inside scoop. 

Charlie’s Angel by Piper G. ’26

Directors: Remi W. ’28 and Julius J. ’27

Elevator pitch: RW: It’s about a crazy lady whose cat gets murdered, and [the detective] find[s] a person who also got murdered.

What’s your favorite thing about the cast? RW: We’re pretty happy; we mesh well. We have good chemistry. 

What’s your favorite thing about your play? RW: It’s been fun to work on people’s voices and stuff. It [has] very distinct voices.

What are the vibes of your play? RW: It’s a detective, it’s a murder mystery, like a “who did it.” I feel like we really leaned into the film noir. 

The Resistance by Yona P. ’26

Director: Cristian S. ’27

Elevator pitch: It’s about this older couple, and they lead a resistance movement. It’s set in a tyrannical regime [which] has been cracking down on resistance movements. They’re losing members [and] the leaders are also getting older; they’re starting to think about succession or the next people who are going to lead their movement.

What’s your favorite thing about the cast? How eager they are to contribute their ideas and how chatty they are. We’ll spend the first hour [and] the last 30 minutes locking in.

What’s your favorite thing about your play? How many opportunities there are. The script is a little vague in terms of the set. The script gives the cast a lot of freedom to make choices [about] how they want to tell the story.

What are the vibes of your play? More serious, more earth toned … This is pre-personal laptops. [We] kept the vibe intentionally vague. 

The Magic of Life by Vera L. ’26 

Directors: Devon S. ’28 and Isabel S. ’28

Elevator pitch: DS: In this cast of plays, we have a lot of comedies, and we have a lot of dramas, and ours is a little bit of both. This play deals with issues on mental health. It’s about a kid overcoming mental health [struggles] through magic. 

What’s your favorite thing about the cast? DS: Our cast is primarily underclassmen, with [the] sole exception of one senior. This cast is strong in different manners. The comedy and the sadness are truly emphasized by the cast. I would like to say this is one of the best groups I’ve worked with, and they’re killing it. 

What are the vibes of your play? DS: The sets are a bedroom, a magic realm, and a forest. The vibes of this story are heavy. There are comedic parts, comedic characters, but there are moments where the characters feel like they could be you. It’s very dark but has a little bit of hope at the end. This is a show everyone at Lakeside should see. It’s a play that will make you cry, it will make you laugh — in the end it can feel like you can get through [anything] as well.

Picture Framed by Tia M. ’26

Directors: Josephine T. ’27 and Iman A. ’27

Elevator pitch: JT: Our play is about societal expectations that are placed on all of us, [and it] is about a dysfunctional family. 

What’s your favorite thing about the cast? JT: We like that every single grade is represented. I think Circus! is a really cool opportunity for everyone from all over the school to gather, which I think is really cool. Every single person in our cast is such a lovely individual. They’re all very individual, but they work together very well, and they’re so very talented. Our chemistry’s amazing and our cast is up to doing anything, like any suggestion we have, any tweaks they want to make. They’re very enthusiastic about what they’re doing. 

What’s your favorite thing about your play? JT: How talented our actors are. Really the most talented cast. We’re so grateful to have them. IA: Regarding the play, I feel like Josephine has done a phenomenal job and how everything is staged and the transitions. JT: And I really think that I wouldn’t be able to do this at all without Iman. She’s the one who’s putting this whole thing together.

What are the vibes of your play? JT: It’s a psychological thriller. Every single person can relate to it in some way. We’re trying to send a message with it, and I think it’s an important message for everyone to hear. 

The Day Off – Ahan D-C. ’26 

Director: Evan M. ’26

Elevator pitch: It’s about these two little kids who are making their way through a big neighborhood. My vision is that everything around them is massive. They’re siblings, so there’s moments of crossing with each other, and there’s moments of them working together. They’re arguing, and then something happens and they’re instantly on the same team again. 

What’s your favorite thing about the cast? I think the atmosphere of rehearsals. It’s so friendly. They’re just so flexible in what they’re doing. We’ll do a scene, and I’ll try my best to describe what my vision wants to change for it, and they’ll try completely new things just because of the trust that’s in the room.

What’s your favorite thing about your play? Moments when you can tell Ahan wrote it. You read the line and you’re like, “y’up, that’s Ahan.” Sometimes because it’s a little janky but it’s something he says a lot. 

What are the vibes of your play? For the two children, it’s like us two against the world. There’s moments of comedy, there’s moments of panic. It’s a bit surreal in a sense. […] There are some in-character moments of surprise as well. They may or may not encounter a group of initially friendly [street vendors] who chase them down with scooters and helmets. 

Each year, Circus! brings together Lakeside students to celebrate each other’s work. Though each play is shorter than other performances throughout the year, each one is the result of original vision and creativity from Lakeside’s drama students, a work which couldn’t exist without the dedication of every writer, director, actor, and designer. As Alban, the producer, told Tatler, “It’s really about giving the young artists an opportunity and getting out [of] the way.” This unique event, open to all Lakeside students, offers the chance to see Lakesiders in a new light — as creators, artists, and leaders.