Phillip Kong

Photography by: Gillian Levene

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Lord of the Flies is UCC’s Year 8 & 9 winter dramatic production for the 2019-2020 school year. The play follows an adaptation of the renowned William Golding novel, where a group of boys are stranded on an inhabited island and attempt to govern themselves. This year’s play is co-directed by Ms. Blagona and Ms. Metalin and will have showings from February 27 – 29, 2020. Here at TBAW, we were fortunate to interview Ms. Blagona to gain additional insight into the play.

Why did you choose Lord of the Flies?

Blagona: I wanted to choose a play that was thematically relevant to our cohort, and this play explores masculine identity, violence, the ‘pack’ mentality and leadership. We spent some time at the beginning of the rehearsal process discussing these themes, both as they are explored in the play and how they are present in their own lives, and I am grateful to Mr Heffernan for joining us for a rehearsal and giving insight based on his experiences as an athlete and a coach.

How did you adapt the play from the novel? Why?

Blagona: Ms Metalin had already completed an adaptation of the novel and I adapted that, making some minor changes simply based on casting choices.

What did you find most challenging about directing the play?

Blagona: The stage combat! We were privileged to have an accomplished fight director come in to choreograph this, but creating believable, yet safe, stage combat is tricky.

What part of the play are you most excited about?

Blagona: Seeing the end result of the boys’ hard work. They’ve put months into this, creating characters entirely unlike themselves and taking creative risks, and I am incredibly proud of them.