Between Nov. 3 to Nov. 5, the Aliso Niguel Theater presented “The Passage,” which was loosely inspired by “Moby Dick,” a book by Herman Melville.

“It follows the lives of the men and women both involved in the whaling ships on Nantucket. It shows the struggles and complications with our main characters Starbuck, who is the first mate, and Ahab the captain of the ship, the Pequod.”

Olivia Irwin, the Puppet Designer of ANTC, also informs: “This show, in particular, was a little more difficult than last year’s shows mainly because not only was it done in a black box theater, it was a topic that we rarely ever do.” 

The overall message of the “Passage” touches upon the idea of obsession as the captain, Ahab, is constantly trying to catch the biggest whale he can find. Ishmael, a little kid who joined the captain’s crew, is portrayed to be rational and was the only one who survived due to his own realization. The rest of the crew followed the lead of Ahab almost blindly, and in the end they were all killed by the storm.

“All of the actors are super friendly and really appreciate the work of the crew, and the crew always tries their hardest and puts in their best work for these shows. Other than just small difficulties, such as something breaking on set or having to remake something.”

The overall story requires a lot of effort to recreate; however, the ANTC created a fantastic set along with amazing visuals to pull together the story.

“One of the biggest challenges was figuring out Mr. Golden’s vision. He does give us a lot of creative liberty, but he also sees things in his own mind as well, as any good director does.”

Mr. Golden, the director of Aliso Niguel Theater Company provides the students everything they need in creating an amazing performance. It is in his best interest of Mr.Golden to ensure a completeness to the stories ANTC presents.

“The story was confusing and left the audience feeling confused, but what saved the play was its creative use of the set and props. It helped draw in the audience in making them feel the importance of the story through an interactive experience.”

Stephen P. LaRocca (11), an audience member for the opening day of the passage, shared that he was a little lost during the story. It is understandable as the topic shared is something that was very different from other stories. He, however, shared his love for the set, costumes, and comedic scenes in which he laughed at. 

Overall, the Aliso Niguel Theater Company accomplished another amazing play filled with fascinating visuals that brought the scenes alive. Though it is a hard topic, it did not slow down ANTC on their mission to deliver emotional acting and engaging story lines.