September 21, 2026

Memorial High School’s Drama Club Production of Hamlet Features Only Mascots

Memorial High School’s Drama Club Production of Hamlet Features Only Mascots

In what’s either an avant-garde masterpiece or a sign of budget cuts gone too far, Memorial High’s spring production of Hamlet will be performed entirely by school mascots. The wrestling team’s grizzly bear plays the melancholy Dane, while Ophelia will be portrayed by the volleyball squad’s parrot mascot squawking through a megaphone. Director Mr. Lowell calls it ‘a bold exploration of identity,’ though audiences may struggle to take Hamlet’s soliloquies seriously when delivered through Spirit Sammy the Eagle’s oversized foam head. The athletic department has already protested the climax, where the fencing team’s musketeer stabs the bear with a baguette.

Annabelle Bransford

Hi, I’m Annabelle Bransford, Memorial High School’s unofficial satirist-in-residence and proud founder of The Daily Detention—a publication so edgy it’s been banned twice and resurrected three times, like a sassy phoenix with a flair for detention slips. I write satire because someone has to hold the line between cafeteria chaos and gym class tyranny. Whether I’m exposing the secret emotional feud between our Algebra teacher and Euclid, or investigating why the pep rally feels like an ancient ritual sacrifice, I try to speak truth to hallway power. Sure, I’ve been called “disruptive,” but mostly by people who wear lanyards unironically. My work has been read by at least two janitors, my entire AP English class, and one substitute teacher who thought it was a cry for help. I consider that range. When I’m not sharpening my wit, I’m dodging group projects, winning banned book club trivia, or mentoring the school's AI Isn’t Funny Club (membership: just me and 17 bots I’ve emotionally manipulated). I’m also a National Merit Semi-Finalist, certified eye-roller at Student Government meetings, and the only girl in school who’s been accused of “weaponizing irony.” My goals? Keep writing, keep laughing, and one day publish a satirical exposé called Yearbook Superlatives and Other Lies. If you want something sugarcoated, try the bake sale. If you want the truth with a punchline, I’m your girl. I've landed a sweet job at Bohiney Magazine, so don't bother me. EMAIL: annabelle@bohiney.com

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