Mr. Viola, the director who brought you Peter and the Starcatcher, along with Bright Star, is emphatic to present South Lakes Theatre’s newest production, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, a spooky and mysterious play inspired by the 1820 short story by Washington Irving, of the same name. The production opens on November 9th, with performances until the 11th. The story is about the Dutch settlement of TarryTown, a small village which is home to a haunted river valley, known as Sleepy Hollow. 

In the spring of 2022, Mr. Viola, who was a theater teacher at Woodbridge High School in Prince William County, was approached by former director Ms. Jenny Girardi and the South Lakes administration. It was very tough for Mr. Viola to leave his Woodbridge theatre company behind. Right before the school year ended in June of 2022, Mr. Viola visited South Lakes with many of his Woodbridge theater students. South Lakes theater students had the opportunity to bond with the Woodbridge students, and Mr. Viola introduced himself to the South Lakes company for the first time. Over the summer of 2022, Mr. Viola took the time to get to know his future students and staff colleagues.   

When speaking about the challenges of producing this show, Mr. Viola stated, “I’m definitely more confident having had success with last year’s mainstage shows, but each show has different challenges, and Sleepy Hollow has some unique challenges, such as hair and makeup, as well as puppetry.”

 Included in the show is a headless horseman, which has been a particularly unique prop to construct for the technical crews. Mr. Viola stated that the show utilizes Shakespearean dialogue, along with rhyme schemes, which has made the actors venture into uncharted territory for a mainstage show. 

Being a part of any show for South Lakes Theatre Arts is a challenging and rewarding experience, especially for the unsung heroes, those on the technical crews. Anyone on the technical crew would attest to the time commitment and dedication that is required. 

Mr. Viola offered a piece of advice for members of the technical crews, stating “Have patience, realize that we’re all in it together, and nobody’s stress or personal struggles is more important than anyone else’s.” Now that the show is in its final stages of production, Mr. Viola stated “I think we are well prepared going into this final week, although it takes a lot of collaboration to bring all of these different elements together and create true art.” 

Now that Mr. Viola has successfully made the leap of changing schools and programs, he commented on the most rewarding parts of the last year, stating, “Seeing the fruits of our labor, and all of the investment in time and passion, coming into fruition at the Brandon Victor Dixon Awards and the Cappies Gala, when we won best musical back to back, as well as many other awards.” 

Mr. Viola has a highly rewarding job, stating “I look forward to coming in everyday and witnessing the collaboration and community of the company, it’s truly inspiring to witness.”