playbill vip

Phew, what a year we have all had! When thinking about how to approach this challenging season for theatre, I wanted to push the envelope and do something different. Lucklily, administration was supportive of my out-of-the-box idea to scrap our traditional three shows and embark on a year-long process of producing the first ever HNA Original Production from scratch. It is my hope that we are all walking away learning new things, acquiring new skills, and taking ownership of the work that was created; an endeavour that took guts. It has not been an easy feat by any stretch of the imagination, and I am so proud of all our students have spearheaded and accomplished this year while facing unprecedented times. Their dedication to the craft, attention to detail, passion for storytelling, ability to lead, want to do something good in the world while addressing social injustices through art, and willingness to be brave was not necessarily surprising to me, but absolutely inspiring and impressive.

My appreciation for every single person who made this production possible is immense. Any show is most certainly a team effort from start to finish in order to accomplish the final product. Thank you to the amazing, twenty-one person cast & our fantastic crew. Each one of you poured your heart and soul into prep work, music recording, and filming. Your unique talents combined to create what I hope was an extraordinary experience for all involved. Thank you to my spectacular partners in creativity, Lily Raabe, Ahmed Alabaca, & Lisa Hilbert. Your incredible vision & enthusiasm in creating a truly one-of-a-kind production was contagious and our students & I are better people for having encountered and learned from each one of you. Thank you to Taryn Webber and Jessy Williams for your countless hours leading us through the music recording process. Thank you to our student directors, Claire, Nia, Ava & Riley for your tireless efforts creating, brainstorming, wrangling cast members, rounding up recordings, passing along helpful tips, leading so gracefully, being so dedicated to making every single piece the best it could be, and being all-around awesome. Thank you to our student director of photography and her amazing Dad, Grace and Matt Wesson, for guiding us on our film shoots, providing professional sound equipment, teaching our students new skills, advising me, and the massive undertaking of editing the final show. We absolutely could not have accomplished what we have without you. Thank you to our team of tech students, Kathleen, Augusta, Sofia, and Ruby for all you did to make filming possible, as well as your creative imput throughout the project. Thank you to Francis Olson, Barb Dallman, Julie Raney, Lena Anderson, Eileen Denby, Cait Greeley & Aoife Groppo for your consistent guidance and wisdom when it came to promoting the show, social media, parent newsletters, budget, film permits, Covid protocols and more.  Thank you to professional playwright and HNA Alumnae Parent Cheryl West for the brilliant writing and producing workshop.  Thank you to the Seattle Parks Department Office of Film and Music for your willingness to allow filming at Discovery Park and your help navigating the process. Thank you to the parents of our exceptional cast and crew for sharing your lovely, gifted young people with us, as well as volunteering to purchase from our Amazon wish list and reaching out with words of encouragement and support. Thank you to the HNA Administration for the opportunity and resources to work with fabulous young humans as we create a little magic.
For the brave adventurers in all of us...

We look forward to seeing what HNA Theatre & Film looks like in 2021-22 and hope to be back in our auditorium with a live audience soon for a new quest.  

With Gratitude & Sparkles,

Ms Wahlen