Theatrefolk Featured Play – Rebootilization by Alan Haehnel

Welcome to our Featured Play Spotlight.  The middle school comedy, Rebootilization by Alan Haehnel, is a full length extravaganza with parts for everyone – and we mean everyone.

Stories all over the world are under attack. Pages are going blank in a pandemic so big, the government’s involved. That’s where SynCryn comes in.

Not an ordinary lab, SynCryn has the original narrative DNA for every story on ice and a plan to save the world from story obliteration. It’s an easy rebootilization process… so long as there aren’t any glitches in the software, or the director doesn’t go crazy, or the stories thaw out too quickly, or pirates get loose.

If none of those things happen, it’s foolproof.

Why did we publish this play?
This play is an amazing feat of casting. You can fit every middle school student on your stage and give them a part. It’s also amazing with its take on the genre. We normally shy away from anything fairy tale associated but this play is so unique, it demands to be shared. Alan tackles the age old question: do stories matter? But that’s not all that’s going on here: youth vs age, technology vs tradition, past vs present. These are delightful discussion starters and this is a delightful piece of theatre.

Let’s hear from the author!

1. Why did you write this play?
This was actually a commissioned play. I wrote it for the Overland Trail Middle School in Overland Park, Kansas. I had written a much shorter, small-cast treatment of this idea before. When I did, I thought how much I liked the concept, so I welcomed the chance to expand the idea in Rebootilization. Plus, I love the juxtaposition of the old stories with new technology.

2. Describe the theme in one or two sentences.
No matter how much technology may influence our lives, we must remember the crucial influence of the old stories in our culture.

3. What’s the most important visual for you in this play?
The chaotic scene when everything is going wrong. If the director and the cast can pull off this confluence of noise, characters, set, and action in a successful way, in a way that seems like artful disaster, then I have confidence that every other element of the play will be handled well.

4. If you could give one piece of advice for those producing the play, what would it be?
Pace, pace, pace! Keep it snappy!

5. Why is this play great for student performers?
Opportunity. This show would typically be performed with a lot of doubling of characters, so the chances to get be busy both on- and off-stage are numerous.