Jackson Colo and Avery Ehrman
Staff Writer and Editor-in-Chief

Nick Zayas 

Frankenstein Director

Beginning his career at a young age, Nick Zayas has always had a fond love for all things theatre. Zayas attended the High School Drama Program at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA) and then transitioned to the University of Southern California (USC), where he received his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. While in California, Zayas fell in love with directing. 

“While I was living out in California after I graduated from USC, a bunch of my friends got together and put on a play in the Hollywood Fringe Festival, and we decided that I would direct,” Zayas said. “I absolutely fell in love with it. Afterward, I started doing workshops and guest artist spots at local schools in Los Angeles. I then started running summer camps, and all that kind of led to teaching.” 

Shortly after Zayas discovered his newfound passion for teaching, he moved back to Winston-Salem, where he taught at The Arts Based School and later R.J. Reynolds. Zayas has been teaching at RJR for almost seven years and continues to amaze with his well-orchestrated and directed performances.  

“We chose Frankenstein last spring because we wanted something that could be addressed in all classrooms with cross-curricular integration,” Zayas said. “Frankenstein is one of those classically taught high school novels that don’t really get a lot of attention. We discovered that our fall dates in the auditorium would actually be over Halloween, so we thought it would kind of be the perfect choice.” 

Zayas continues to improve and strengthen the RJR Drama Department and looks forward to the years to come!

Emerson Carroll

Frankenstein Assistant Director & Badger Stage Manager

When it comes to theatre, Emerson Carroll knows it all. Shortly after starting her junior year at RJR, Carroll stepped into two big shoes: assistant director and stage manager. Her passion for theatre came at the early age of ten after she went to her mom’s rehearsal of the 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. Carroll’s love has only grown after trying out directing in her sophomore year theatre class. 

“When I came to this school, I thought that it was really cool that they do senior scenes,” Carroll said. “Senior scenes is when an individual student gets to pick and direct a scene from their favorite play or musical. That was my first time directing, and I had a lot of fun with it.” 

After directing her first scene, Carroll continued to pursue her newfound interest, starting with assistant directing the fall play Frankenstein. Carroll has gained great experience assistant directing her first main-stage performance and is thrilled to continue seeing progress throughout her cast. 

“I really, really enjoyed watching the whole cast grow,” Carroll said. “I am also so incredibly proud to be able to say that I assistant directed Frankenstein because they will sometimes do things on stage, and I think, ‘Woah that’s my note. I told them to do that.’ It’s like a rush.” 

Carroll is not only assistant directing Frankenstein but has also stepped into a new role of stage managing the second fall play, Badger. 

“The job of stage managers is kind of to be in charge of tech and to call cues for the crew,” Carroll said. “Writing cues is a bit more complicated, but basically, the lighting designer and the sound designer individually have their own sets of cues; they design them and put them where the director says they should go. I then get them from separate scripts, and I have to compile them all into one and figure out which cue needs to go when.” 

Carroll is excited to share her production with RJR and looks forward to further developing her directing and stage-managing skills as she progresses through her junior and senior years!

Chloe Howard

Badger Director

For Chloe Howard, theatre has always been a passion. Howard began her theatrical career at the ripe age of three and has continued to show an increase in talent and leadership throughout. After beginning her freshman year at RJR, Howard began to explore new parts of theatre that she had never tried before. 

“During my freshman year, I got to direct a scene in theatre class, and then I did it again my sophomore year,” Howard said. “After I directed two scenes, [Mr. Zayas] asked me to assistant direct the fall play, [Radium Girls] and spring musical, [Mamma Mia]. Then, at the beginning of this year, he asked if I wanted to direct a play on my own.” 

While Howard has no doubt impressed her fellow peers, she has also left a lasting impression on RJR theatre teacher Nick Zayas. 

“Each and every year, Chloe has directed a senior or Not-So Senior Scene,” Zayas said. “I’ve always been really, really impressed with her work; her leadership and her final product are always outstanding. She has assistant directed for me three different times and I was just blown away by her ability to be a leader for her peers but also still be their friend. She keeps the cast vibes really positive.” 

As Howard progresses toward the end of her high school career, she reflects on her experience directing her first full-length play, Badger. 

“I was so excited to start. I think people enjoy that [the director] is a student because I think they can connect a little more with me. It felt so cool to see the show come together. It was hard to see the vision at first, but now that all of the elements are there, it’s really rewarding.” 

Howard intends to continue pursuing her love for theatre for the rest of her life and couldn’t be happier to expand her career at RJR!

Grady Mowery 

Badger Assistant Director

One thing is for certain: Grady Mowery can do it all. Whether you see him backstage, onstage, or just out in a crowd, he is always helping put a smile on someone’s face. Mowery’s involvement with RJR Demon Drama began in his freshman theatre class, where he learned the ins and outs of both being on and off stage. 

“I took [theatre class] freshman year, and it was always really interesting,” Mowery said. “I kind of realized that I couldn’t [be an actor] in all the shows just cause acting is a really big undertaking. I still wanted to be a part of those productions, so I started doing tech. My freshman year, I did tech for one of the shows and then quickly learned that that takes as much if not more work, but I found that a lot more fulfilling.” 

After gaining gratification from being a part of the backstage technical crew, Mowery decided to try out directing. 

“I originally thought I would just be getting [Chloe Howard’s] Starbucks orders,” Mowery said. “But over the course of the show, I got to do more. I was mostly able to take and give notes and generally kind of corral people. Also, if Chloe ever said something and it wasn’t understood or heard, I would just say it louder.” 

Being a part of the production team was no easy feat, but Mowery is proud to be a part of an amazing group of people. 

“[Directing] is like a much bigger feeling of accomplishment,” Mowery said. “I somehow feel kind of responsible for them, so watching them succeed, it’s crazy. The cast of Badger just had such good energy. We were all just very positive and supportive over each other, and we’d laugh and stuff. It was really cool.” 

Mowery intends to continue his support for the RJR arts and looks forward to sharing Badger with the RJR community!

Brice Shearburn 

Frankenstein Stage Manager

Behind each successful theater production is a group backstage thinking quickly on their feet, solving problems, and carefully watching every detail, ensuring a flawless performance. For RJR, this is junior Brice Shearburn. Beginning theater at ten and finding their love for working backstage at fourteen, Shearburn is just what the RJR theater department needed. 

“I’d always been kind of interested in theater, but one day in fourth grade, something clicked, and I was like, that’s what I want to do with my life,” Shearburn said. “The directors asked the cast to help out with building the set, so I came, and I thought that it was the coolest thing ever. From that point on, I started working backstage for shows, which is how I ultimately got into stage management and later lighting design.” 

As stage manager, Shearburn attended almost every Frankenstein rehearsal, watching the pieces of the play slowly fall together. 

“I got to see the show progress from the first read-through all the way to the finished product we performed,” Shearburn said. “I’m so proud of all the hard work the Frankenstein cast has put in.”

The theatre department’s hard work has paid off as the theater department returns to the North Carolina Theater Conference (NCTC) to compete in their one-act play festival. 

“NCTC regionals is a super positive experience where everyone is so nice and supportive, and since the entire audience is theater kids, it’s always a really good crowd, which makes performing at NCTC really fun,” Shearburn said. “​​After each show, two adjudicators will give feedback, praise, and constructive criticism. At the end of the second day, there’s an awards ceremony.” 

As the fall play season ends, we can’t wait to see what opportunities the spring musical will hold for Shearburn!

Tegan Kelly

Frankenstein Choreographer 

Beginning when she was merely five years old, senior Tegan Kelly has always had a passion for dance. When she joined the RJR dance department as a freshman, her love for choreography was found.

“I view choreography as an outlet to express myself, tell a story, and connect to the audience in ways that cannot be expressed through words,” Kelly said. 

This year, Kelly joined the production team for Frankenstein as lead choreographer, developing leadership skills and improving as a dancer.  

“It feels rewarding to finally see my vision come together with the help of our director, Mr. Zayas,” Kelly said. “It’s truly beautiful how the months of rehearsals and brainstorming created an incredible show.”

While the final product of Frankenstein was something everyone on the production team was proud of, the progress had its fair share of challenges. 

“This year, I was able to experience watching this process from the audience, and it was amazing to see the play come together finally,” Kelly said. “This process has changed how I view the performing arts through truly understanding the perseverance it takes to be involved in the world of theater and dance.”

At NCTC this year, Kelly won a “Design and Production Excellence Award” for her Frankenstein choreography, and as she finishes her final performance at RJR, we can’t wait to see where her talents will lead her.

“I struggled with balancing this work with my hectic schedule to doubting myself in those times of chaos,” Kelly said. “I overcame these challenges by leaning onto my community in theater. This community is uplifting, supportive, and driven. Every rehearsal with this cast taught me how to become a better leader, choreographer, and person.”