Danvers High School Academy Theatre presents "The King Stag" for METG Drama Fest

The Danvers High School Academy Theatre (DHS ACTS) will perform “The King Stag,” an updated version of the 18th-century Italian commedia dell’arte play – essentially a comic fairytale -- as its entry in the 2017 Massachusetts Educational Theater Guild (METG) Drama Festival. DHS ACTS will offer a preview performance of the play on Wednesday, March 1, at 7 PM at Danvers High School, 60 Cabot Road, Danvers, MA. The public is welcome to attend; suggested donation is $5 per ticket. DHS ACTS will perform the show in the preliminary round of METG competition on Saturday, March 4, at Andover High School. DHS ACTS will then host the semi-final round of competition on Saturday, March 18, 2017.

“The King Stag” was written by Carlo Gozzi and premiered in Venice in 1762. In the play, King Deramo of Serendip is searching for a wife. After rejecting thousands of candidates, he meets and falls in love with Angela, the daughter of his Second Minister. Unfortunately, the evil Prime Minister Tartaglia also loves Angela. When Tartaglia learns that King Deramo possesses a magic spell which allows him to transfer his soul into the body of a dead animal, Tartaglia develops a wretched plan to take control of the crown and take Angela as his wife. Chaos ensues until a bit more magic gives this fairy tale a proper happily-ever-after ending.

The talented cast and crew of 57 DHS students looks forward to presenting this competition piece under the direction of Kyla Moulton (Director) and Tracie Ewing (Technical Director). After Drama Fest, the DHS ACTS 2016-2017 season will conclude with a Musical Revue later this spring. Visit www.danversacademytheatre.org for more information.