Shakespearean cowboys, a spy who becomes embroiled in trouble, robots in a soap opera, and a show that ‘must go on.’ All are basic ideas for the four shows scheduled this fall season by the Starlight Theatre Company.

Teacher and Director Matthew Humphrey’s production of the “Taming of the Shrew” is a comedy set in the wild west, told with a feminist point of view.  The plot centers around a boy paying someone to fall in love with his crushes’ terrible older sister so he can marry the girl of their dreams and it makes fun of the sexist tones presented in the original.

With a new western tone in the original Italian setting and written by a British author, Humphrey’s production centers around the message that seems to make fun of the bigotry themes seen hundreds of years ago. It emphasizes that women don’t have to conform to society’s gender roles, but at the same time some change can be healthy in order to grow into a better person.

“This show is really special because Taming of the Shrew is arguably one of Shakespeare’s most sexist shows, and Humphrey, my director, is taking a different side of it,” senior actress Katie Norris said.

Riddled with humor, this show still manages to portrays Shakespeare’s classic tale and language.

“I’m nervous about the Shakespearean language because it is super confusing and you have to be very articulate,” junior actress Elizabeth Tiedt said.

“Taming of the Shrew”, in this production,  is a cowboy esque empowering struggle of a woman’s worth in the world.

“I am most excited for the wild west setting of the ‘Taming of the Shrew’ because it’s an interesting twist to the classic play,” junior technician Emma Thomas said. “It’s different from the other fall shows because it doesn’t involve any British characters unlike the other shows.”

Directed by new theatre teacher, Courtney Hall, “Noises Off” is a farce where the characters run into quite a few issues, but they refuse to let these issues stand in their way. It is a show with an ambitious take that will be a challenge for both the cast and its director.

“When I was first reading the play, I was worried that because of how chaotic the finale is, the cast will lose themselves in the chaos,” Hall said. “But after a few rehearsals with my amazing cast, I am confident that they will take control of the scene and not vice versa.”

Taking on a paradoxical theme, “Noises Off” is special in that it is a play inside of a play.

“I am excited for people to see the play within a play version of the show because the actors are putting on a play and it goes pretty bad,” senior actress Jenna Eveleth said. “I am nervous about trying to keep it together on stage because it will be really funny.”

This show is hilariously fast-paced, full of chaos and confusion.

“Noises Off is a play within a play where you become acquainted with both the actors in the play but also the characters they’re playing,” Hall said.

Directed by Marco Bazan, “Comic Potential”,  is a satire of television, acting as a touching romantic comedy about an android named Adam Trainsmith  aspires to write a comedy for his favorite actress Jacie. However, due to jealousy, the television studio doesn’t quite see eye to eye with Trainsmith’s goals.

“The overall message of our show is robots have feelings too and through this comedy if they understand so,” junior technician Darcy Kanneman said.

This story offers a different and unique element that most shows do not contain.

“My favorite part about my show is that although it’s about robots and humans, it gives this allusion to our current society in how it’s two different people from different backgrounds,” junior technician Sam Searles said.

Set on a television set, this show is going to be a great opportunity for technicians to create and design this set.

“I’m most nervous for the stage setup because it’s a little difficult because the setting is mainly in a recording studio,” Kanneman said.

“39 Steps”, directed by teacher Hannah Huerta, is a story about a man on vacation in London who unexpectedly gets stuck in a spy scandal. Essentially, it’s an energetic spy comedy.

“I chose this show because it’s really funny and very challenging. The humor is definitely styled from a different time. It’s fast paced, cheeky, and parodies one of the most iconic directors of all time, Alfred Hitchcock,” Huerta said.

This British comedy has suspenseful twists, unexpected moments of humor, and steady surprises that are unexpected.

“If I could describe this show in a couple of words I would use alluring, sporadic, cheeky and hilarious. I would use these words because of how many things are happening at once. Our play is one of those plays where you really have to pay attention to enjoy the performance in its full potential,” junior actress Bailey Potter said.

From set design to many different accents, this show has many pieces to it. However the main excitement for this show is the mentality of simply having fun.

“The overall message for this show is to have fun. It’s not meant to be taken seriously. I’m actually really glad to be working on a piece like this right now. With everything that is happening in the world, I think we all need a night to sit back and laugh,” Huerta said.