“Thought-provoking” is the word that I would use to describe the Blind Brook High School fall drama. Twelve Angry Jurors follows the members of a jury as they deliberate about the guilt of a nineteen year old boy who allegedly murdered his father. The enticing drama tackles heavy topics such as racism and bigotry, while also leaving plenty of room for laughs, and nail-biting suspense. Blind Brook High School’s production of Twelve Angry Jurors is an exceptionally unique production, as it was performed “in the round”, meaning that unlike a traditional proscenium theater setup, where the audience views the performance from the front of the stage, the audience sits on the stage, completely surrounding the performers. Crew members built two-level platforms around the rim of the stage, which became the seating area for the audience. In the center of the stage was the table, at which the actors, portraying the twelve jurors, were seated.
For the actors, performing in the round was a completely new experience, and a very eye-opening one, as it required them to adjust their performance to the intimate perspective of the audience. Cast member Rory Mayer, who portrayed Juror #3 in the play, remarks, “I liked the unique experience [the round] offered, not only to have an audience so close and on all sides, but also to learn the different acting techniques that accompany theatre in the round.” The show opens as the twelve jurors enter the jury room, and the deliberation begins. Most jurors firmly believe that the boy is guilty. Most. When the jurors vote for the first time, all but one juror vote for guilty, leaving the vote at eleven guilty, one not guilty. As the story progresses, each juror’s unique characteristics grow increasingly clear to the audience, as more and more theories and possibilities are uncovered, and each juror is forced to find their own path to conclusions, reasonable or otherwise. Twelve Angry Jurors is a timeless and intriguing play that leaves audience members in awe and shock. The powerful conclusion inspires all who witnessed it to embrace a brand new mindset, one that teaches a person to have curiosity and grit to look beyond what’s in front of them. Read between the lines, peek behind the curtain, because you may be surprised by what they find. Twelve Angry Jurors undoubtedly provokes audiences to stand up for what they believe in, no matter how daunting it may seem, for “it takes a great deal of courage to stand alone”.