Performed right here at Fremont, many were blown away by the hard work and dedication of the extremely talented Advanced Theatre class.

The class has been pouring their combined efforts into this spectacular show since January.

It is a one-act play that was performed for the UHSAA Drama Competition in the regional category. The UHSAA stands for Utah High School Activities Association and is responsible for putting together the athletic and fine arts activities for the state of Utah.

The class performed at Fremont High School on the 14th and 16th of March for practice and the viewing pleasure of our community. Admission was not a set price, but rather a choice for the patron in what amount they wished to donate towards the theater class. The class would perform on the 17th at Syracuse High School for the competition.

Merry Men is based loosely on the Robin Hood story, centered around the Maiden Marian and her ladies in waiting. Marian, played by Trista Madden, Senior, is betrothed to the Sheriff of Nottingham, played by Ryan Kuchenmeister, Junior, to her dismay; however, our fair maiden won’t give up so easily. 

Ms. Patterson described the play as: “Monty Python meets Robin Hood type of comedy.” She couldn’t be any more right. The amount of jokes, gags, and humor that was put into this play will leave you wanting more of such performances from such a lovely cast and crew. 

The play starts with Maid Marian and her ladies in waiting talking about how she is to be married off to the sheriff of Nottingham and Nursie, played by Sheridan Kern, asking her to accept such a “joyous” arrangement made by Prince John.

Maid Marian and her ladies in waiting hatch the genius plan to pretend to be bandits so the sheriff will look bad.

They ride out in the woods with the Friar Tuck and throw a sack over his head and pretend to be bandits with Maid Marian taking the lead. Maid Marian “falls” for the bandit and makes out with the bandit behind a literal censor board. This was a hilarious scene thanks to the portrayal from Trista Madden. 

The sheriff finds out about this and creates a plan with Guy (pronounced Gee), played by Joey Schiro, to trap the bandits, but two of the ladies in waiting sneak in and hear about the plan. They tell Maid Marian and the rest of the ladies and they plot a plan of their own.

They once again ride out into the woods with the Friar and before the sheriff can ambush them, they spring another trap on Friar Tuck and accidentally reveal that the lead bandit’s name is “Robin Hood” and that he’s supposedly  the “best archer in the land”.

The sheriff learns about this and with the help of Guy they plan an archery tournament with the prize being a kiss from the Maiden Marian. This plan goes awry when an actual archer, played by Belle Francom, wins the tournament instead of the fabled Robin Hood. 

This failure causes the sheriff to launch his ultimate plan, to dress as the Maiden Marian to lure Robin Hood out. 

We end up in the forest where plenty happens. Guy gets chased by the weasels that he previously helped the sheriff set loose which causes him to give up helping the sheriff and leave. Joey protraided so much emotion in his monologue on this. The sheriff finds the bandit Robin and they both talk about their issues. This eventually leads to Marian finding out that this maiden is the sheriff and them having the most comical duel with rubber chickens, fish, umbrellas, you name it. This is because Trista’s and Ryan’s energy plays so well together in this scene in particular .

Nursie fakes being King George to tell the sheriff and marian that they don’t have to get married. After this Sherdian does an impeccable job of showing the care and somewhat motherly love Nursie has for Marian. The play then ends with everyone living happily ever after.

All in all it was quite the show and certainly has left the community waiting for the class’s next performance.