The set is wonderfully organized and fittingly sparse, representing what could be a classroom in any average school: there are two blackboards on either side of the stage, assorted student desk-chairs, two sets of shelves, a teacher’s desk and a simple coat rack. Yet even the coat rack becomes important, as well, as Thornwood uses it as a character in Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” at the beginning of the play where we see him begin to behave slightly unusual.

At first it is amusing as Thornwood abandons the curriculum choice of “The Stranger” by Albert Camus and instead begins forcing his students to enact portions of the script from “Hamlet.” However, while he seems earnest in trying to connect with his students, it becomes clear that his true intentions are vague and rather suspect. Fetterman’s performance goes from moments of great humor, to great anger, to great desperation, all in split second intervals, shifting wildly thanks to Howarth’s skillfully worded dialogue.

There are three sets of barred windows along the back wall of the set. However, in this show, it is not certain whether these bars are in place to keep the bad elements lurking outside from getting into the school or to keep similar elements inside the school from getting out.

This is the world these students live in and they have no desire to learn, especially about the character of Hamlet or his relationship with his mother or his uncle. Yet still Thornwood persists in his effort to break through to show them worlds that exist beyond their hitherto limited imagination.

The environment of the classroom is thoroughly depressing and the students ... even more depressing. None of them have any interest in either Thornwood or “Hamlet” and behave as if in detention, spewing nothing but cruel, dismal, hurtful barbs at one another and at Thornwood. Yet still the teacher persists and does not intend to give up on them, even though many others have already, including themselves.

As Thornwood’s downward spiral progresses he begins rambling memorized text as the students continually engage in their own conversations, some scripted, many ad lib, all brutally honest in the actors depiction of some less ideal student classes today.

The ongoing chatter underscoring the dialogue may prove to be highly distracting for some but, in fact, it enhances the realism of the piece, showing the ongoing angst of teachers trying to fight the biggest enemy of student interest in academics (which is everything else in today’s world but). The chatter does not interrupt the flow of the action. Rather, it is part of it, heightening the already building tension between Thornwood and his students.

Of the students, those most affected by Thornwood’s antics are also the actors who give the best performances. There is Bernardo (Alex Fontanes), who is a terrible student, yet enjoys sneaking into the classroom just to “hang” with Thornwood before class begins.

Then there is Samantha (Alexis Guertin) who is absolutely charming as the only enthusiastic student willing to give “Hamlet” a chance. She gets progressively better as the show goes on.

Samantha’s friend Blake (Liam Doherty) is a guttural, blue collar low achiever who fancies himself her protector. As Thornwood’s mental collapse worsens during the third act, the two engage in a fencing scene from Hamlet. This scene also allows some great comedy relief provided by substitute teacher Mr. Heller, hilariously played by John Ardini.

Outside of Blake, the two most confrontational to Thornwood are students Mike (Mike Daniel) who feels forced to attend the classes of a teacher he does not respect or connect with, for various reasons; and Jackie (Alyssa Burgwinkel) who is a perfect representation of that coarse, manipulative student who uses every opportunity to skip out of class, running to the principal’s office to sick the administration onto a teacher she doesn’t like, and she loathes Thornwood.

The play is long but moves seamlessly thanks to the thoroughly capable co-direction of Barbara Guertin and Kelly Stowall.
​
The show runs approximately two hours with a 10 minute intermission. Strong language. Not recommended for young children.

Playwright Howarth’s ‘Thornwood’ to be staged by 4th Wall, QCCBy Richard Duckett 
Telegram & Gazette Staff 

Posted Apr 18, 2018 at 8:24 PM

WORCESTER — Tony Howarth has walked in Thornwood’s shoes and knows his feelings.

Or at least, he’s written about what they might be, or not be.

In Howarth’s play “Thornwood,” the title character is a burned-out English teacher who becomes revitalized when he starts teaching inner-city high school students Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” using some techniques that are somewhat questionable to the conservative administration that he works under.

​Howarth taught English and theater at Woodlands High School in Greenburgh, New York, for 28 years.

“Yes and no,” Howarth said when asked if there’s anything autobiographical about the play.

“Thornwood” will be presented in a joint venture by 4th Wall Stage Company and Quinsigamond Community College April 19-29 at the Hebert Theater at QCC. The play has been produced off-Broadway at the Mint Theatre and at a number of colleges, and was made into an indie film, “Slings and Arrows”
Howarth is more definite about what he wants from the audience. “I want them to walk in someone’s shoes,” he said. “And go away from this experience and go on walking in other people’s shoes and find humanity.”

A playwright, director, poet and former journalist besides being a teacher, Howarth was at QCC last week to give a master class to students on “Hamlet.”
Well, he wasn’t quite sure if one should call it a master class, said the self-effacing Howarth, who hasn’t lost his native English accent even though he came to America as a child after his mother “married a Yank.”

“I don’t know what it is,” he said when talking before conducting the class. But what he intended to do was go through a few opening scenes of “Hamlet” and then take two students to play Hamlet and Ophelia in the “nunnery” scene of Act 3, Scene 1. The romance between Hamlet and Ophelia has become doomed, which is underscored by the scene, which precipitates a descent into madness.

“I want to break it down several times until they’re able to do it on their own so it seems real,” Howarth said of the students playing the roles. “It’s an exploration, let’s say. It’s an exploration of these people.”

Howarth will be back in Worcester April 19 for the opening night of “Thornwood” at QCC. “I wouldn’t miss it,” he said.

QCC has developed a new theater program and 4th Wall has been working with faculty and students for a first-ever collaboration to put on “Thornwood.” The cast of about 15 for “Thornwood” has both 4th Wall actors (including Robert Fetterman, who is also known for his involvement with the Worcester Shakespeare Company, as Thornwood) and QCC students. Barbara Guertin of 4th Wall is the show’s producer and co-director with Kelly Stowell of QCC.

In the play, Thornwood is a teacher who hasn’t found his career to be challenging. He is definitely burned out, Howarth said.

“Yes, that’s crucial. He’s been trying to spend his life accommodating the SAT world and he says ‘No, I’m going to do it right this time.’ He’s finally doing what he believes he should be doing. I’m not sure it’s correct. I’m not making that judgment,” Howarth said.

Thornwood has students actually fencing in class as Hamlet and Laertes face off in the deadly culmination of the play. “I never did that,” Howarth said of some of Thornwood’s unorthodox ways of involving his students, which also include setting up a Punch and Judy scenario with masks and wielding a fake sword. “He’s gone beyond the reasonable.”

On the other hand, “I did try to make ‘Hamlet’ live beyond the page,” he said.

“One of the things is to encourage them (students) to read from the play not just as lines from the play but as something beyond that. Trying to help them see the pain and the joy going through that person.” Howarth added dryly that admittedly there is not a lot of joy per se in “Hamlet.”

“I guess ultimately it’s a matter of trying to teach them as students to read the subjects in the script, not just the words. Get beneath the words. That doesn’t often happen when you have true and false (exam) questions. I don’t know if it happens with you but sometimes when you read a novel you see yourself part of it. I encourage students to see themselves a little bit.”

Asked if he succeeded in that when he was teaching “Hamlet” in high school, Howarth again said, “I have to say yes and I have to say no. Some students responded very strongly and some students responded very negatively. The ultimate problem as I saw it was Shakespeare has a reputation for being a very unpleasant experience in most high schools.

“When I was (teaching) in high school, we read the play through in class but I was not asked to go beyond the words. Going deeper into the words set some students on fire, and other students it made it worse. It was a mixed bag. I tried my best.”

Howarth recalled sitting in a restaurant reading a copy of “Hamlet” and a waitress looking at it and saying ” ‘Oh Shakespeare. Oh God, I’m so glad I’m finished with that.’ ”

Back in high school classes, “it was very painful to me when they (students) came in and said ‘What do we have to read this for?’ ”

There were rewarding moments as well. “Yes, when the kid got it, when the kid started to understand, that was reward enough.”

Howarth cane to the United States when he was 6, living first in Cleveland and then New York state. He lives in Patterson, New York.

He was a reporter, editorial writer and features editor for The New York World-Telegram & Sun but didn’t like the look of things as the evening newspaper was about to merge with another New York evening paper, the Journal American.

“I had a growing family and I felt very distressed about the future of journalism,” he said. “I felt it would be better to stabilize everything for the family and got into teaching.”

Howarth said he had been promised a job with the merged entity, but the new paper only lasted another four or five months before it folded. “It was just total chaos.”

He’s written several plays, a musical and the book and lyrics to two other musicals. For many summers Howarth directed with the College Light Opera Company in Falmouth, and was playwright-in-residence at the Mint Theatre in New York.

These days, he said, his writing efforts are focused on poetry.

“I’m very happy to be doing that. It’s more intense but I have a freedom I don’t have writing plays.”

With that, he still keeps a hand in teaching and an eye on his plays.

He was happy to be here with QCC and 4th Wall. “I’m really invested in helping them with their program, and it’s always such a delight to work with students and share something with them,” Howarth said.

Contact Richard Duckett at richard.duckett@telegram.com. Follow him on Twitter @TGRDuckett