Those who have read William Golding’s “Lord of the Flies” are familiar with the savage qualities inherent in men, but what many are unfamiliar with is how this story would compare when enacted by an all-female cast.

Director Chris Gerken probed audiences to deliberate by casting two shows: one all-male and one all-female for this year’s winter play.  The boys performed Nigel Williams’ adaptation of the book Thursday, Feb. 27 and Saturday, March 1 and the girls performed Friday, Feb. 28 and Sunday, March 2.

“Lord of the Flies,” read in sophomore English classes, tells of a group of British school children whose plane crashes on a small island, a situation leaving them in a state of anarchy free of any adult guidance.

“Unfortunately, the story is a microcosm of the adult world and it is a violent world,” principal Alan Goodwin said.  “You hope that when people read the novel or see these kinds of plays that they start questioning and checking themselves, as far as their acceptance of violence in our society and elsewhere.”

English teacher Prudence Crewdson, who saw the girls’ production, commended their innovative portrayal of the story.

“I really liked the book and I thought they did an excellent job,” she said. “The entire time I was watching it, I was fascinated by the portrayal of girls behaving that way. While I thought that the girls did a great job performing it, and they were convincing as actors, I concluded that girls probably wouldn’t act that way whereas boys would.”

Both productions opened with the cast standing in straight lines representing rows of airplane seats, with clouds projected onto a screen behind them. As the plane flew into a thunderstorm and crashed into the sea, the actors and actresses broke into chaotic movement, occupying every square inch of the stage and the set.

Modern and bold choreography was featured in various parts of the production. The boys’ movements tended to be more chaotic, whereas the girls often used fluid gymnastics to convey the same disorder in a more graceful manner.

The sequence broke as Piggy, played by Alistair Faghani and Olivia Blanchard, screamed for help. Audience members acclaimed the performances of both actors, ranking them among the best of the production. Both characters effectively portrayed Piggy’s persistent yet helpless attitude.

The actors made efficient use of the impressive set, which included a functioning waterfall and shallow pool, representing a lagoon. Many times, characters bravely jumped into the water from the elevated platforms representing the different levels of the landscape.

“I was worried someone was going to get hurt running up and down the stairs and all the water everywhere and throwing each other around,” parent Mickie Simpson said. “The fact that they were able to have water on the stage and all the blood and then the mics kept working, I thought that was really impressive.”

The show’s tech crew used innovative methods to enhance certain aspects of the production. The realistic-looking fake blood, which characters smeared on their bodies as they descended into savagery, was actually made of chocolate and red food dye, and condoms were used to waterproof the microphones.

The audience had more to praise than just the amazing waterworks.  During Simon/Simone’s death scene, strobe lights flashed in the dark auditorium, making actor Jake Zeisel/actress Kaycie Goral difficult to detect and creating a sense of chaos.  Junior Jake Parsky said the special effects especially impressed him.

“They flashed the lights and had Simon running through the center [of the stage] before they had actually killed him,” Parsky said.  “Just like in the book, Simon just comes out of the woods and the other boys grab him but they don’t actually see who he is.”

Each cast gave a successful, convincing performance of the savagery of the situation. Lucas Weals and Katherine Paterson as Ralph/Rachel and Ryan Savage and Erin Craig as Jack/Jackie successfully communicated the growing rivalry between the two chiefs and showed the increasingly primitive tendencies of both characters as the situation became more desperate.

Overall, both performances produced positive responses from audience members.

“It’s great; it’s gory,” said senior Roxana Taginya.  “I think it stays really true to the book and it really emphasizes certain symbols seen in the book.”

Goodwin, a former English teacher, said he thought the play effectively communicated Golding’s central theme.

“It was an awesome production,” Goodwin said.  “It’s a grim story, but it was so well acted.  They conveyed what they needed to convey about the grim aspects of man.  I already tweeted my opinion.”