Tension hung heavy in the air as the Lynbrook High School Drama Club transported audiences to a 1920's Tennessee courtroom in the heat of July to reenact the timeless drama of Jerome Lawrence and Robert Edwin Lee's Inherit the Wind.
The play, which debuted in 1955, presented a fictionalized account of the famous Scopes "Monkey" Trial, in which William Jennings Bryan and Clarence Darrow argued the fate of John T. Scopes, who was accused of the crime of teaching evolution in his classroom.
In the play, the fictional characters of Matthew Harrison Brady (played by
Tim Keegan), and E.K. Hormbeck (Maggie Neal) were the prosecutors who faced Henry Drummond (Matt Paris) as he did his best to defend the integrity and teachings of Bertram Cates (Robert Haberman).
The authors' intent was to use this fictional representation of the Scopes trial as a vehicle to examine McCarthyism and its effects on intellectual freedom.
Although half a century has passed since the play was written, these young actors, through their heartfelt performances, proved the continued relevance of these powerful themes.
The show was directed by Jill Speiser and assistant directed by Tom Santacapita. Carol-Ann Pryor was in charge of costumes, and art and set design were supervised by Michael Kunz, with set construction by Tom Wolber. In charge of lighting and sound design were Glen Davis and Justin Tricarico, respectively.
