The W-L Theatre Department’s play, “Check Please,” aired on March 20 over Zoom with more than  120 people in attendance. This was the first play of the school year. Luckily, if you happened to miss the original showing, you can visit the W-L Homepage and watch it at any time. You will not regret checking it out.

The production is a comedy that follows two separate individuals, a man and a woman, who struggle to find a meaningful relationship during the pandemic. Both individuals go on a series of tiring, frustrating and awkward online dates. They encounter a wide variety of people, spanning from internet-obsessed gamers to phoney psychics. Finally, when it seems like all hope is lost, they end up matching with each other and hitting it off. 

Although the entire play was only 29 minutes long, the Theatre Department managed to skillfully craft an entertaining story without rushing any specific scenes or details. The dialogue was written very well, with each character having a unique voice and personality. It was especially entertaining how the characters were exaggerated versions of people that exist in  everyday life.

For example, one of the characters, Jackie, only talked with texting lingo. My personal favorite was Barry, a businessman with a strong love for PowerPoint  presentations. The wardrobe and set designs were simple, but still cleverly got the characters’ personalities point across. One side character, Ruth, was an aspiring politician, which was evident to the audience through her political posters and the American flag pin on her blazer.

One aspect of the play that was unique was that the production showed each character’s dating profile. This way, the audience understands a little bit about the character before they actually appear on screen. It acted as an interesting transition between scenes. At the end of the play, they included a couple short clips of the side characters, which served as an interesting resolution to the story.

Each of the actors were enthusiastic, delivering lines both clearly and confidently. You could tell that they had fun in the process of making the production. None of the interactions seemed overly rehearsed and each one seemed to last the right amount of time.

It is very impressive how the Theatre Department was able to organize and complete a production during a time where everyone has to stay at home. Instead of using quarantine as an excuse to not perform anything, they used it to their advantage by making a play about the comedic and often awkward nature of Zoom dates. While we are living in a very uncertain and stressful period, sometimes the best thing we can do is make light of the unusual parts and laugh. “Check Please” accomplishes this greatly and, for that reason, I strongly encourage you to watch it.