On May 10, 2024, the AP US History exam was administered at 8 am. It was an exhaustive assessment of the American historical knowledge of the class. The next day, the entire AP US History class attended the Cannon Falls Theater’s presentation of Anne and Green Gables, despite being worn out of historical topics. However, the show was of such execution that the burning APUSH-related prompt came up: Evaluate the extent of quality to which Anne of Green Gables was performed by the Cannon Falls Theater program in the period between May 11, 2024, at 7 pm and May 11, 2024, at approximately 9:30 pm. The response: Anne of Green Gables was performed at a high level, which was likely a result of skilled actors and thorough practice.
The cast of Anne of Green Gables this year included 10 seniors, who were good at their roles, but also a multitude of middle schoolers and younger high schoolers, who displayed their talent too. For example, Kendahl Zimmerman and Bowen Maki did an excellent job of portraying Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert, but at the same time Kinzley Rezac, a 7th grader, played Anne Shirley – the Cuthberts’ accidentally adopted daughter – with a passion. Memorizing lines is one thing, but delivering them with the vocal inflections, volume, and clarity required for an accurate performance is much harder, and the cast of Anne of Green Gables did not disappoint. In addition, the actors showed their talent when things went off-script. When a lighting malfunction highlighted the wrong actors, Emily Churchill began to deliver her line, but when the error was corrected, she maintained composure and was ready for when it was her time. Times like those aren’t covered in practice, so keeping the show moving when mishaps happen is an indication of talent among the cast and crew.
Of course, the actors weren’t born knowing what to do. They had to memorize their lines, positions, and interactions through hours of rehearsal, and it shows. During the Saturday show, there was no stammering, and it seemed that everyone knew what to do. Or, if they didn’t, they did a good job improvising to keep the show going. Take Meagan Pederson’s performance of older Anne, when her bow kept falling off while having a party with her friend. She didn’t draw extra attention to the wardrobe malfunction in any way, and it almost seemed like it was supposed to happen, which can only be the result of learning how to smooth over mishaps during practice. Another aspect that displayed practice was the lighting. One thing that differentiated Anne of Green Gables from past performances by the theater program was the use of lighting to highlight different people. When the lights were on a person, they acted, and when they were on another character, that character acted. This allowed multiple characters to be on stage at once and made for quicker prop changes as when the lights were off of one person, then that area of the stage could be set up for the next scene while the other side was performing. Knowing what to do when the lights came on was essential, and the many practices that the group went through made sure that happened.
All in all, the kindred spirits of the Cannon Falls theater did a high-quality job of performing Anne of Green Gables, and the APUSH class of 2023-2024 approved of their show. Through careful practice and talented actors, the spring performance proved to be a fine display of what the theater could do. Evaluating the extent of quality to which Anne of Green Gables was performed, it’s clear that the response is a definite success.
