Woodside Priory School stages 'Treasure Island' Woodside Priory School stages 'Treasure Island' (May 11, 2005)

The final production of the year at Woodside Priory School is a story of piracy and danger: Robert Lewis Stevenson's "Treasure Island."

Performances are at 7 p.m. Thursday and Friday, May 19 and 20, and at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday, May 21.

Tickets -- at $7 for general admission and $5 for students -- are on sale now in the school bookstore, but school productions often sell out.

In this classic tale, teenager Jim Hawkins leaves his old life helping his mother run their inn, when a mysterious sailor on the run gives him a treasure map to untold riches. A crew hired to sail them to the island is not what it seems. One man in particular, the one-legged Long John Silver, has evil schemes that may spell doom for them all.

The Priory's version is full of fancy costumes, crazy makeup and fanciful staging. The cast and crew in real life are 28 middle schoolers from sixth, seventh and eighth grade.

"I chose Treasure Island because it's an exciting story," said John Sugden, director and drama teacher. "The stage adaptation is brilliant in capturing the language and characters of the book."

It also was an opportunity to give students an in-depth look at what life was like during this period, said Mr. Sugden. They learn stage combat and British dialect, and use their imaginations to create rich, memorable characters.

The cast includes: Jenna Tehaney, Casey Montalvo and Chipper Montalvo from Atherton; Hadley Greswold, Ellie Oates, Alix Franklin, Katie Pfau, Colton Purvin, Jackson Rafter and Matthew Hill from Portola Valley; and Lauren Schilling, Sophie Goldberg, Grace Goldberg and Alix Traeger from Woodside.

For more information, call Pat Reed in the school office at 851-8221, or e-mail her at preed@woodsidepriory.com. The campus is located at 302 Portola Road in Portola Valley.

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