As audience members walked into the Performing Arts Center (PAC), they were greeted by a giant projection of assorted facts about the alphabet, biblical figures like Cain and Abel, and mythological artwork such as The Intervention of the Sabine Women. The projection, along with another slide show revealed after Act II, was created by Westridge’s Theater Production class. Both provided context for their respective acts in The Skin of Our Teeth, which was performed by Westridge Theatre from November 8 to 10. Written by Thornton Wilder, The Skin of Our Teeth is divided into three acts, with different students performing as the extraordinary Antrobus family and their witty maid Sabina in each act. Living together in Excelsior, New Jersey, the Antrobus family consists of George and Maggie Antrobus and their two children, Henry and Gladys. The play follows the Antrobus family and Sabina’s journey as they escape disasters like the Ice Age, the Great Flood, and war, all with exaggerated, comedic flair.

With different students cast as the Antrobus family and Sabina in each act, the performance allowed the audience to admire and appreciate each student’s individual acting style. Spectators fell in love with Clover D. ’25’s Sabina and her comedic and sarcastic remarks on the impending Ice Age as well as Avani L. ’26’s emotional cries for her son Abel in Act I. The play also featured many large and realistic props. In Act II, the set featured brightly colored chairs on wheels, a working Connect-4 board, and realistic sound effects that made spectators jump in their seats. Mindy LeMoine, whose daughter Eliza L. ’25 acted as Mrs. Antrobus in Act III, said, “I love the whole segment that’s in Atlantic City, because I love all the motion on the stage…The whole Act II is probably the brightest point.”

The play’s nonlinear timeline and its absurdist script can be confusing for some viewers and even initially confused cast members. Senior Eliza L. said, “It was definitely difficult in the beginning, but there was a lot of discussion as a company in the first few weeks. We asked a lot of questions and answered them together so we could understand as much of the play as we could before we really got started.” Director of Theatre Mr. Brandon Kruhm acknowledged the complexity and said, “It’s a really dense play, there’s a lot of references and a lot of satire built into it…There’s three acts, and each act is sort of its own different world and its own different play, so getting the right tone throughout the play was a challenge.” In order to break down the play for the audience, Mr. Kruhm worked with both the Theatre Production and the English IV: Drama and Interpretation class. During a break between the second and third act, viewers even received a list of thought-provoking questions made by the English class about the play. 

Despite the unconventional nature of the play’s execution, it earned a standing ovation at the end thanks to the hard work students put in since September. Robert Parkhurst, father of Abby P. ’25, who played Henry in the third act, said, “There’s such passion by everybody in it. I mean, it just really brought the characters to life. [They] did a really good job with some very intense and heavy subjects and really did a good job of representing the play well.”