Zombies to storm Pasco High

A torn gray shirt, stained red, sits on a chair propping open the door of the Pasco High School auditorium.

Inside, a collection of students are preparing to show people 10 Ways to Survive the Zombie Apocalypse.

The Pasco Players are performing the Don Zoldis’ play at the school’s Gregson Auditorium on Oct. 21-22 and 24. Tickets are $5.

“(The play) is zany. It’s funny. There are a lot of quirky moments,” said director Heather Johnson. “There are a lot of silly and stupid moments, but the kids really own it, and I think that’s why it’s been such a pleasure to work on.”

The play was written to be performed by high school students, and features narrators that provide a way to survive, and the other actors demonstrating the results.

“I can’t give any of (the ways) up, but I will say, I don’t think any of them will work,” she said.

The Pasco Players partnered with the DECA club’s Haunted Hallway. The box office opens at 6 p.m., so audience members can see the hallway before the performance starts at 7 p.m.

“We also have several of our clubs that will be handing out candy on (Oct.) 24th as a trick-or-treating feature,” Johnson said. “We’re going to have a costume contest on Monday.”

Johnson said one of the features of the performance is the brightly-colored makeup and wigs for the zombies, and the dark lines panted on the faces of all the characters.

Professional stylist Mindy Krejci designed the makeup for the performers.

“We wanted it to be mostly about the makeup,” Johnson said. “She has helped us design a pop art, graphic novel theme. That’s why the zombies are neon and wearing crazy wigs. ... It’s less scary and more silly ... It’s brand new to the Tri-Cities. I don’t think anybody has quite done a show like this before.”

Johnson said the students worked hard for seven weeks to prepare the 45-minute production. Normally, they have about 12 weeks to prepare, but the students wanted to have a performance ready to start the new school year.

“These kids have risen to the challenge. We’ve got a lot of new people on stage. I’m super excited about where it’s all going to go,” she said.

This story was originally published October 20, 2016 at 6:41 PM with the headline "Zombies to storm Pasco High."