Puyallup ELC Blog

As I worked on this show and looked at the script, I found a Scripture that ties in well to the play’s overall theme. It is John 15:12-13 (NIV), and it says, “My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” A part in the play that fits into this verse perfectly is when Charlotte is willing to die for Wilbur. She does this without any hesitation because she truly loves Wilbur, her friend, and is willing to do anything for him even if she has to give up her own life. This relates to the verse in so many ways. But one way that I thought about as soon as I read this Scripture is that Jesus is like Charlotte. He is like her in the sense that He loves each one of us so much that He did the greatest thing that anybody could do for us, which was dying on the cross to save us from our sin. He did this because He loves us and would do anything for us, just like Charlotte would do anything for her friend Wilbur.  

—Kiana Duckworth, Student Director and CCS Senior

As I was rereading the story of Charlotte’s Web, I came across this quote from the book: “A spider’s web is stronger than it looks. Although it is made of thin, delicate strands, the web is not easily broken.” This quote stood out to me as I watched our cast grow more connected with each other. It is amazing to see how theatre can build relationships and strengthen friendships. We, as the theatre, are all connected in friendship, and together we make each other stronger. Throughout the rehearsals, I got to watch as our cast grew closer, and it reminded me of how I first made friends through theatre. Though many students have come and gone, they are all still connected to the web of the performing arts and the relationships that have come from it. All the past students have changed me, and I am glad to have been able to direct the next generation of theatre students, to pass on skills taught to me by former students. My hope is that I have made a positive impact on these students, and when we are gone and they are upperclassmen, they will continue to inspire and change the others that come after them.  

—Rick Vander Hoek, Student Director and CCS Senior