By Jeff Arnold

Comedian/actor John Morello’s visited the WHS juniors and seniors this past Monday, April 26. Instead of addressing the school with a drawn out lecture on the immorality of drug use, Morello’s approached sensitive subjects through a one man play “Dirt.” In the hour long production Morello portrayed five characters, including a compassionate stoner, a World War II veteran committed to tolerance, and a depressed rape victim. The performance used these characters to discuss drug addiction, self-harm, and having compassion for people in different situations. Overall, the assembly was met with nearly universal positive feedback.

“I really enjoyed how he went about his presentation,” says junior Emma Grossman,”It was cool how he created a play that nearly everybody could connect with and relate to.”

Grossman was not alone in this opinion as senior Louisa Duffy adds, “His tactic of combining humor and serious moments was engaging and definitely left me with a good impression. That was one of my favorite assemblies I’ve seen. It was engaging and had a really positive message.”

Although most students liked Morello’s performance, some were critical.

“He was too preachy. How many times can someone come in and say, ‘drugs are bad, don’t do drugs,'” remarks senior Emily Fisher. “I just couldn’t relate to any of the characters.”

Despite this negative feedback, the overwhelming majority of students, myself included, were complimentary of the event. Never before have I seen a group of students so large be entranced by an in-school assembly. When Morello stopped talking within the play the auditorium was eerily silent, as if every single student wanted to hear what happened next or how each character’s story would connect.

Different than past assemblies, this one was worthwhile and should be brought back by WHS.