The Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts (Charter Arts) Theatre Department’s 2024-25 season of original plays written by new as well as seasoned professional playwrights continued with its production of, “The John Wilkes Booth High School for the Performing Arts Presents the Most Inclusive, Least Offensive Play Ever: An After School Special” by Stephen Kaplan in mid-October. Marley Mathias, one of the school’s alumni, directed the production.

In this story, the parents of The John Wilkes Booth High School for the Performing Arts threaten to remove the theatre program because they realize that all theatre is offensive, the scrappy students of JWB and their drama teacher race to save their beloved department by producing the most inclusive and least offensive play ever.

Artistic Director of Theatre, Kelly Minner-Bickert, selected this piece as part of the department’s season.

“We were looking for a piece that resonated with our young artists, where they saw themselves reflected in the characters, as well as the world in which they exist,” Minner-Bickert said. “This show was a perfect fit as it dealt with high schoolers at a performing arts school scrambling to put on a musical in the face of censorship by misguided outside sources.

“It features an ensemble cast with some really wonderful roles for our young artists to sink their teeth into. We are also very committed to bringing new works to the stage and the Lehigh Valley and this show is the second of three world premieres featured here at Charter Arts.”

Director Marley Mathias said the play is a perfect example of the complexities that comedians, artists, institutions and schools around the globe are dealing with when it comes to art being censored.

“What can we joke about? Who can say what? Could this be offensive? Will it exclude someone?” Mathias said. “While these are all valid questions and thoughts to consider, at what point does it become detrimental to the art form?

“How can we grow when we are not confronting things that make us uncomfortable and ultimately leading us to growth? Do we sit back and stay complicit or do we embrace and welcome new ideas? This play explores all of these questions in a funny and thought-provoking way,” Mathias added.

Contributed article