Murmurs from the crowd fall silent, the curtain falls and one thousand eyes are staring back at you. You feel the heat of the spotlight on you. The crowd is waiting for you to do something.

Nerve-racking, right? That’s a normal day for senior Chase Meehan. Meehan is in drama, and regularly is on stage in front of thousands of judges, and they love him.

Meehan spends his free time recording covers of Beach Boys’ songs. His passion for singing stems from his love of theater. In ninth grade, his friends encouraged him to audition for To Miss Maris, With Love, and when he made the part he played a student.

“My drama director, Mrs. Wishart, has been unbelievably helpful to me. As both a mentor and a friend, she has taught me about aspects of theater ranging from stage management to lights and sound to acting,” said Meehan.

Meehan has been involved in Maria Wishart’s class for sometime now.

“Chase is one of those people that we wish could clone himself so that we could benefit from his wonderful skills and qualities on stage and backstage and  in the tech booth, but there is only one Chase, and he is one-of-a-kind,” said Wishart.

Meehan is an assistant director for the Children’s Theater, where he runs through scenes and songs with the kids. Meehan’s favorite thing about drama is the people, which comes as no surprise because he is a kind, delightful person to talk to.

“Chase goes above and beyond and people love to be around him. Everything’s better when Chase is around,” said Wishart.

“I love the people. Having the opportunity to work with fun, talented people each and every year in various shows is both an honor and a privilege,” said Meehan.

Following high school, Meehan plans to go to college and get a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science.

“Although drama may not be a part of my college experience, it will help me in ways that translate outside of theater,” said Meehan.

Story by Dorothy Gofourth