bang bang you’re dead

it was the name of the play that first intrigued me. i was working the lights for the marist theatre production of “hay fever” when i found out that “bang bang you’re dead” was going to be the next mccta play. excited, i downloaded the script. i don’t know what i was expecting, but it wasn’t what i found. that’s not to say i was disappointed in the script, on the contrary, i thought it was fantastic. i guess i better start explaining myself.

“bang bang you’re dead” takes place entirely in the main character’s head and jail cell. josh was a high school freshman who killed five classmates, who all come back for answers. in addition to those six people, there are five actors who assume various roles throughout the play, including josh’s parents, grandfather, principal, and psychotherapist. the only prop is a large wooden box that gets used throughout the play as a bench, bed, and coffin. the show opens with a dark stage and josh asleep on his cell bunk. four flashlight beams begin to sweep the stage freely until settling on josh. two stay on him the entire time, and two point to each of the dead students when they first speak. the students are as follows:
michael - played sports with josh
katie - used to date josh
matt (my part) - didn’t even know josh
jessie - also didn’t know josh
emily - lived on the same street as josh, the two grew up together
throughout the play, the actors and the deceased try and show josh the error of his ways and get him to explain himself for why he did what he did.

the play was first performed in 1999, around the same time as the columbine massacre. that event is not mentioned in the play, as it hadn’t happened yet, but three others are, a sort of mantra repeated by the dead students. “paducah, jonesboro, springfield.” i did some research so i could talk about this in the blog, and even though the character of josh is fictional, the elements that make him up are all taken from these three shootings. on december 2nd, 1997, in paducah, kentucky, a high school freshman opened fire on a prayer circle at his school, killing three and injuring five. in “bang bag you’re dead,” josh is a freshman. two students in jonesboro, arkansas, on march 24th, 1998 set off a fire alarm then shot at students and teachers as they fled the building. there were five dead and ten wounded, and josh kills five people at his school as well. in springfield, oregon, on may 21st of that same year, two students were killed and 25 were wounded by a single gunman with a .22 rifle before he was taken down. he also shot and killed both parents. in “bang bang you’re dead” josh uses a rifle for his attacks, kills both parents, and is taken down by another student.

the play was performed here on november 30th and december 1st and 2nd. the audience’s reaction to the show showed that it was an emotional and informative production that continues to have relevance in today’s society.