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Monkey Island play
Front page | Interviews | Posters | Concept designs | Backstage | Pictures | Videos
On the 21st and 29th of May 2005 a live stage version of The Secret of Monkey Island was performed at the Hammond High School in Columbia, Maryland. 18 year old Chris Heady wrote, directed, and produced the play while also starring as LeChuck. Here you can see concept design, backstage images, show pictures, and read an interview with Chris Heady, all by clicking the appropriate links above. Have fun!
Below you can download all 9 parts of the MI play in various size, quality, and with or without subtitles. Part 9 is only available with subtitles. All parts are in wmv format. Alternative, you can also view the entire play at YouTube. As a little bonus there is also a bloopers video at YouTube
Interview with Matt Lehtonen
Can you tell us a little about yourself?
I live in Columbia, Maryland and am a senior at Hammond High School. I am seventeen, blue eyed, pale, 106 lbs. and I'm all man! Alas i am not single ladies (Ewwww whats the deal with long term high school relationships?) I am super nerdy. I destroy myself with high level classes and barely squeeze in time to hang out with my friends. My hobbies include visiting museums, watching foreign films, tennis and ultimate frisbee, and managing to spend more time listening to music than not listening to music.
Do you have any history of acting?
I had been in a few productions prior to Secret of Monkey Islands, including Godspell (i was Judas), and held minor rolls in the school productions of A Streetcar Named Desire and Kiss Me Kate. I have not been in a play since as the new drama teacher at my school is a monster.
Had you played any of the games beforehand?
I had not.
Have you played any of the games since doing the play?
I still have not. sorrrry!
How did you hear about the play?
Why through the amazing Chris Heady of course.
What made you decide to be in the play?
Essentially i went into the auditions knowing that Chris had me in mind for the part and didnt really have a back up. I knew he was having some trouble getting the okay from the right people in the school. I couldnt let him go through so much trouble and then decide not to be a part of the show.
Were you chosen to play Guybrush or did you in particular aim for that part?
I am told that Chris had me in mind for the part for quite a while.
How did you prepare for the role of Guybrush?
I read the script. Again and again and again. Like i said, i never played the game. For the most part i had to rely on what Chris told me about the character. I got the impression that i needed to be kind of goofy and juvenille. A little dumb but with a heart of gold. thats what i went for. i hear i wasnt too far off.
What was the hardest part?
The hardest part was definately coping with the fact that not everyone involved was really committed. I was consistently one of the few who showed up to every rehearsal with the lines memorized. Still, i couldnt be too mad at those who were not. It was a high stress time of year for everyone involved and we all had our other comitments. I think the play definately suffered for the lack of effort on some persons behalf, but it was still a sucess and a lot of fun and thats what counts.
What was the most fun part?
Really the most fun was just working with familiar people and having it add to the play. During rehearsals we'd often joke around with eachother and improvise. If it worked then we used it instead of what was in the script.
How do you feel the play turned out?
I have a bad habit of answering questions in previous answers. In all honesty we were rushed and faced conflicting scheduals. The play came out the best it could have. It could have gone off cleaner. Still, it was hardly a failure.
If Chris Heady made a play based on the second game in the series, "LeChuck's Revenge", would you play Guybrush again?
I'd definately be tempted. I am even more busy this year than i was last. Unfortunately Chris has departed to wherever that kid went after he graduated so the odds are slim.
Anything else you would like to say?
The positive response to this play is a constant amazement to me. I thank all of you for your interest in Chris' work. Thank you for any high regard you might hold for me, though i must bow down and admit that the VooDoo Lady was a show stealer.
Not related to the play, but a visitor would like to know if you any Finnish heritage. (Regarding your surname.)
Hahaha I love it! I sure do have Finnish heritage. I dont know the real details, but my grandmother on my fathers side immigrated to the US with her parents in the early 1900's.
One day i shall visit the land of my ancestors.
Interview with Chris Heady
On May 13th, 2005 I did an interview with Chris Heady to hear more about the production of the play and the end result.
Tell us a bit about yourself.
My name is Chris Heady I'm 18 years old. I directed, wrote, starred in, and produced the stage version of The Secret of Monkey Island.
What were the reasons for doing a play?
During my junior year I had taken on a similar project directing, producing, writing, and starring in a play called Never Look Back. Originally intended to be a drama and ending up as a comedy, the results were mixed but most people liked it. Now in my senior year at high school, I decided I should take on another show, this time a comedy.
How did you get the idea to do a play based on The Secret of Monkey Island?
I wanted to adapt something to the stage, something I knew would be successful. Monkey Island has a huge fanbase online and I've spent the last couple years of my life playing the series at home on my computer. The idea came when I was watching a forum debate (on worldofmi's forums) about how a movie version of Monkey Island should be made. Watching this, I figured that this could go on for months but still the people over at LucasArts wouldn't put out a Monkey Island movie, nor would anyone over at the forums have enough knowledge or have enough money to make a fan movie that everyone would be happy with. That's when I thought about making it into a play, something manageable, funny, and everyone can relate to. It's then that I started working on the script.
How did you contact LucasArts and what was their initial response?
Originally I wrote an email to LucasArts which received no response. I then went through my GT Mentorship teacher Mrs. Debra Messer and wrote a second letter, this time on letterhead and mailed it through the school's outgoing mail. Within a week, we received a response. Although normally they don't give out such rights to do such projects, because it was school affiliated they would allow it to be performed.
How did all the legal stuff work? What were you allowed to do/use and what were you not allowed to do/use?
They wrote up a contract that not only I had to sign, but the high school principal as well. I also gave over a copy of the original script (which has now been edited and changed) Because we were doing it for educational purposes we didn't have to pay for any rights. The deal was that we couldn't distribute the script, we weren't supposed to duplicate and sell copies of the show, and we had to do it at the designated high school within a year of signing the contract.
Was there a big interest to work on the play?
Surprisingly the Hammond Drama Department got behind it very quickly and pushed to support it. We weren't given a budget though because the play was considered an extra project. A local band called Curbside came together and put on a Benefit Concert for us. Over the course of the evening, the band raised $800 to support the show. Other former seniors also came in and donated hours of their time in helping build the sets.
How did people who have never heard of MI feel about the story?
No one in the cast had ever heard of Monkey Island before. Everyone who read the script definately thought it was funny. The 3-4 people who actually knew about Monkey Island happened to be on tech. I had everyone research their characters and then the best part was seeing them make it their own. The script by the end became more of a guideline and I often let the actors improv out scenes coming up with totally new concepts that were far funnier than what originally was in the script.
How many people were working on the play? How many on costumes/sets?
Twenty one actors and about fifteen techies.
How many actors were in the play and which characters from MI did they portray?
Cast list
MATT LEHTONTEN
GUYRBRUSH THREEPWOOD
CHRIS HEADY
CAPTAIN LECHUCK
CHRIS SISSON
LOOKOUT
HERMAN TOOTHROT
VOODOO HEAD
ALICIA SPRULL
GOVERNOR ELAINE MARLEY
CAITLYN DAVIS
CARLA THE SWORDMASTER
ZACH LYON
OTIS
HELEN STACKHOUSE
MEATHOOK
MAX ROBINSON
MAP SELLER
STAN
JOHN HAMILTON
BOB
DUSTIN MORRIS
FESTER SHINETOP
ZOMBIE PIRATE
BAGMI DAS
VOODOO LADY
ZAC COOKE
MANCOMB SEEPGOOD
SMIRK
TOMATOHEAD
JOSH KEMPER
PIRATE LEADER 3
LEMONHEAD
JOSH KEMPER
JOSH BOVILL
PIRATE LEADER 2
GREYHEAD
CHRIS POTTS
PIRATE LEADER
ZOMBIE PIRATE
SARAH BRODINE
JADE THE SWASHBUCKLIN' SEXY PIRATE WENCH
PATRICIA VANALSTINE
RED EYED SASHA THE SEXIER PIRATE WENCH
ENNA TREIBER
BLOODY MARY BONNY THE SEXIEST PIRATE WENCH
FIONA SCHRAM
PRIEST
TIMMY DUQUETTE
TIM THE ZOMBIE PIRATE
SHELLY DRONEY
PARROT
We had actors sometimes playing up to three roles in the play. It sort of became "Monty Pythonish" at times but there were just a lot of characters in the game and one of the things I wanted to stay true to was the story.
Did the play follow the story in the game or were there changes?
The script follows the game very faithfully. The biggest scene we had to cut out was the Fettucini Brothers and the troll bridge. They had to be cut out not because we didn't want to do them, but because there was a lack of commitment from some cast members at times and they really weren't needed. Everyone in our cast had extremely busy lives and often we'd be missing 3-4 actors which would completely ruin a rehearsal. We also had to change the racial profile of some of the characters. In the play version, the Voodoo Lady is Indian which is surprisingly hilarious. We also have a black Elaine. Originally we had someone else for the role, but commitment became an issue with her and she had to be cut. It's a shame because she was the perfect profile, but Alicia (Elaine) really came through and did a hilarious job.
How long did it take from you got the idea until the play was ready?
I came up with the idea for a Monkey Island play in August. Between August and November, we fought over getting the rights and getting it approved by the school. In December I casted the show, but it wouldn't be until March that we were allowed to start rehearsing in the auditorium. April 21st and 29th we performed.
Were you and the people involved satisfied with the results? Costumes/sets/performances?
Most of the costumes were donated to us by a professional seamstress early on so I was very greatful for the donation. Kate Lally was responsible for the remaining attire and did a great job at clothing people.
Sets as always come together at the last minute. I talked with Mark Webb the set designer later and we agreed that certain set pieces definately had more time put into them than others. But the world of Monkey Island had been created and that's really all that matters.
Performances were what made the show great. I have to commemorate Matt Lehtonen typically an unknown actor to our school up until Monkey Island who had the role of Guybrush Threepwood. He took on a huge responsibility and even though he had a terribly busy schedule, he was very dependable to be at rehearsal every single day. He was also always one of the first to know his lines for a scene. Bagmi Das for creating the Indian Voodoo Lady received standing ovations from the crowd and litterally stole the show. I could go on and talk about each actor but that would take too long. Everyone did an outstanding job.
Anything else you would like to share about the production of the play?
We had to teach most of our cast members swordplay. All the sets were designed by college student Mark Webb. I sat down with him and we talked about the look and feel of Monkey Island. He was involved with the project very early on and delivered some of the most incredbile sets imaginable. I did not take on the role of directing alone, I had an assistant director Kori Chaney who was responsible at times for directing the actors while I ran around and tried to do everything. We were up against the odds on this play, we were often kicked out of the auditorium, even though we had reserved it first. We were considered not as important in the school's eyes and were often left wondering where to go. It wasn't like we could go to someone's house all the time because I needed for the actors to interact with the props and sets and they could only do that when we had rehearsals in the auditorium. There was two articles posted in the local newspapers about the play. You can check them out online.
Were you satisfied with the turnout for the performances? Did enough tickets sell?
89 people showed up the first night. I expected 20. The second night we had about 162, we'll never know the exact amount because people kept filing in after we had stopped counting tickets. What was amazing was the people who were late came up to us and still paid for their tickets. I think they realized that it was well worth the $5. I originally put in $500 into the budget and we raised $800 from a benefit concert. The hope of the Drama Department was that they could pay me back my $500. But we definately made more than that, a lot more and it's very encouraging to know that we did a good job. Will I ever see that extra money? No. That went to the Drama Department and we're still working out the money issue but I'll get my 500 back eventually.
What did you do to get people not familiar with MI come to the play and did they like it?
I decided to start with the beginning, The Secret of Monkey Island. This is when we meet Guybrush for the first time and really get to understand the storyline. The concept was simple really, Guybrush wants to be a pirate but he must do these three things to do so. Then his attention becomes fixed on rescuing Elaine. No previous experience was required to watch this play but we told people that it was a farce. I can guarentee you that 85-95 percent of the people who came to the shows had never played Monkey Island or heard of it before. Since closing night I have heard nothing but good reviews. Everyone who saw the show loved it, it was very easily accepted and widely acclaimed.
What did you do to promote the play?
In announcements we told people that we poked fun at pop films such as Princess Bride, Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and Pirates of the Caribbean. We printed off about 200 fliers that went everywhere. Then there's my mom who knows everyone who would ever want to come and see a Chris Heady production, then there's the internet, and just word of mouth. During the night of the show we sold Grog, Cream Soda, and Root Beer at the concession stands. These went fast by hungry theater goers who loved the tie-in to the show.
Has anyone from LucasArts seen the play? If so, what was their reaction to it?
From my knowledge LucasArts has not seen the play yet. Nor do I think that they want to acknowledge the fact that it existed.
Is there anything else you would like to share?
No I don't think so. Monkey Island was fun to do but I'm going to take a breather now, say the summer before I go to work again on another project.
Posters
Here you can see the posters from the show and two images of Chris Heady, who directed, wrote, starred in, and produced the stage version of The Secret of Monkey Island. What he is holding is hopefully the prop used for the Navigator's Head.
Concept designs
These were early concept designs for the show.
Town of Melee
An early concept design for the town. The town would remain on stage for the entire duration of the show. However, whenever Guybrush would enter a new environment, the three houses (International House of Voodoo, Scumm Bar, Smirk/Carla's House) would be on flats and would swivel around showing the inside of the house. Other ways of showing Guybrush in a new environment would include closing the curtains. The clocktower was eventually scrubbed due to time restraints but would've basically been one large wood panel painted to show depth. The mountain and dock were later scrubbed as well.
Monkey Island
Very close to what eventually came out in the end. The Monkey Head as well as the guest hut were lifted in and out of scenes as opposed to being enormous pieces incapable of quick scene changes as originally intended. An example of an improvement on the original idea.
Lookout point and hook island
Only Hook Island was kept for the final show. The whole pulley system was scrubbed being deemed unsafe for a high schoolers. So we improved and had Guybrush leap onto Hook Island with the rubber chicken with the pulley in the middle above his head.
Scumm Bar
Eventually looking more in the style of the Voodoo House, I originally wanted it to open up like a doll house. Even though this eventually changed, much of the original ideas still went into the final piece. The smiley face on the sign and the chandelier were elements from the game which made their way onto the stage.
International House of Voodoo
The actual frame of the Voodoo house ended up resembling more the door frame than the original shape intended. The chair was never found so we had the Voodoo Lady pop in and out. The skeleton head was replaced by a bone wind chime. The flames were still kept for the final piece. This was one of the most visually catching pieces for Monkey Island and it came out beautifully.
Death Starfish
This was one of the first to go, and the hardest. Deemed unnecessary, due to time restraints and quick working techies, although insanely neat to've built it would've taken up too much space and would have only been onstage for two scenes. It was therefore scrubbed. It would have been a length of 18 ft. long and would've been one enormous panel on wheels.
Backstage
As you probably expected, here are images from the backstage.
Pictures
This is some pictures from the performence of the play.
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