By Jessica Robison

Moapa Valley Progress

MVHS Drama students performed last week in a production of “The Government Inspector” by Nikolai Gogol. Photo by Jessica Robison.

The Moapa Valley High School Drama Department once again stunned its audience with a spectacular performance of “The Government Inspector” last week at the Ron Dalley Theater.

This comedy, written by Nikolai Gogol in the early 1800’s, is set in a small town. The governor, who mistreats the town’s citizens, learns that an inspector will be arriving “in-cognito.” When a well-dressed stranger arrives, everyone assumes that he is the inspector. They treat him well and give him all that he asks. No one realizes they have been cheated until he is long gone.

The production displayed unique special effects. Snow fell in front of the stage during scene changes. Also, set changes were more mysterious. Instead of the technical theater students coming onstage to rearrange the set, they pushed everything from behind, giving it a mechanical feel.

“This group has a really strong tech, which is how we were able to accomplish that,” MVHS Drama teacher Kenna Dalley said. “Hopefully our set will be even stronger for the next play.”

In an interesting effect, whenever a character shared his thoughts with the audience, he would snap and the others on stage would freeze as the lights dimmed. The character would then share what was on his mind before snapping again and everything would resume where it left off.

In one humorous instance, the school superintendent played by Salvador Navarro had become angry. He slammed his fist down on a table several times which triggered the thought-sharing technique. Each time he hit the table, the lights would dim and the other characters would freeze and be silent, only to resume once he hit the table again. This happened two or three times as he let his anger out.

“It took a few times to get that right,” Dalley admitted. “No one really realizes how much work it is to put on a show. It’s always an eye opener.”

The governor of the town was played by Dallin Watkins. He was bossy and often angry or stressed. Watkins played his role well and delivered his speeches clearly and with feeling. The governor’s quarrelsome family consisted of his proper wife, Anna, played by L’rysa McMurray, and his sarcastic, indifferent daughter, Marya, played by Taylor Zundel.

Kameron Moore acted as Ivan Khlestakov, the stranger that everyone mistook to be the inspector. He snored loudly, succeeded in acting drunk, and flirted with every girl character in the play.

Daniele Pray was his servant, Osip. She acted as a grumpy, old lady that could barely tolerate the laziness of Ivan. Pray and Moore each performed well-spoken monologues and excelled at playing their characters.

Dobchinsky, played by Jason Zerkle, and Bobchinsky, played by McKenzie Harris, were the goofy land owners that suggested to the governor that Ivan Khlestakov was the inspector. They wore strange outfits and constantly argued in weird lisp-y voices.

“They all developed their characters,” Dalley said. “They did it on their own. Once they learned their lines, they brought their characters to life with their own creativity. I could not have expected better from this group. It was a difficult script and they really came out on top with it,” Dalley commented. “We really enjoyed this show and look forward to the spring show.”