Clay Watson, 10

What are you involved with on campus? Speech and Debate as well as Theatre.

Describe the craziest thing that has happened to you during the production of a show. We were in costume but I was missing a piece so I ran up the stairs to the dressing room to get it. There was a screw sticking out of the wall, and I fell and cut myself on it. My dad got me to an emergency room and I got six stitches, I was back by intermission because the show must go on.

Describe to me, the rush of when the curtains open up for the first scene. During A Christmas Carol, which was my first show, I was on stage when the curtain opened and that feeling is just horrifying, it’s exhilarating, it’s like nothing I’ve ever experienced before. Then you just have to concentrate on saying your lines, and hoping you know them well enough.

Is there anything you do to ignore the fact that the audience is there to make it easier on yourself I just focus on one person that I don’t know, it makes me forget that there are important people in the crowd. I’m performing for that one person, they aren’t going to take me home after the show so I worry less about their judgement.

You are currently in You Can’t Do That Dan Moody. How is that? It’s great, there is a great community theatre vibe to it all. It’s an experience that I won’t ever forget.

What about it will you not forget? Mainly the cast because this was a grueling process, out of 22 people in the show, it is the first performance for 11 of them.

How long would you say you practice per week? Every week, I practice maybe four hours.

So you are also in Speech and Debate, can you tell me something about Speech and Debate that you won’t forget? The rush of beating the other people in my round.

Can you describe to me a time that you did beat someone in your round? Last year I was at a different high school and I had just finished performing, and at the end of every round, there are postings that go up to see who progressed to the next round and I’m always extremely excited to see my name up there.