Vera W. Hoffman
THEATER/DRAMA
I have been a theater kid since I can remember. My earliest memories of acting were in 4th Grade. It was my school's 50th anniversary and they decided to put on "The Lion King". 4th graders weren't allowed main roles, but I got to dance on stage as a lioness and sing in an ensemble. It was one of my best memories of acting.
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I didn't stop there. In my 5th-grade play, I played the villain, and in the same year, I was part of the ensemble for our school play (we still weren't allowed main roles). I also joined an acting team that won first place in an acting competition with schools from all around Kenya. Moving on to 6th grade, I starred as the Cat in the Hat in "Seussical the Musical." In 7th grade, I had the opportunity to star as Audrey II in "Little Shop of Horrors." Moreover, I took on the role of captain for the acting team in 7th grade, and we came in 2nd place by just one point in the same acting competition.
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I took a break from acting from grades 8-9 due to COVID, however, as soon as I got into Grade 10, my acting journey continued. I became the youngest theater leader of UWC ISAK Japan in grade 11, directing and starring as Gabriella in "High School Musical Junior", which we completed in just four weeks. I directed and acted in our Winter Showcase (same as the dance one), acted in our Spring Play: "Metamorphoses", and am currently working on co-directing and starring as Mrs. Peacock in "Clue! On Stage".
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On the side, I have organized two 24-hour theater projects, where members of the ISAK community write, direct, act, and perform a series of plays in 24-hours. Both experiences were very enjoyable, and we plan on having another one soon.
High School Musical Junior
This was one of my most challenging acting experiences ever. Due to poor management of the play the previous year and COVID, we were unable to perform it during my G10 year. When I took over the theater club, we switched to the Junior version and I we were able to complete and perform the musical in four weeks. Definitely my biggest accomplishment.
24-Hour Theater #1:
47:22 - 1:03:28
This was my first time organizing a 24-hour theater project, but I think it was quite successful overall. There were some struggles for the directors, but we were able to pull through at the end and I am very proud of everyone who participated. There were a lot of people who had never tried acting before, and it was really inspiring to see others trying it out and gaining confidence.
Spring Play: Metamorphoses, written by Mary Zimmerman
This play was performed during my Spring Semester of G11. Due to copyright issues, we weren't allowed to film it. In this play I was casted for multiple roles as it includes a series of short stories. I played Midas, Attendant, Iris, the Therapist, and Citizen of the Dead.
24-Hour Theater #2
One of my most meaningful performances. The script that we were given had a very beautiful message and I was proud to be the one to convey it. There were a few mishaps as we did only have around 10 hours or so to prepare it, learn our lines, and do the blocking.