The UCLA School of Drama, Film and Television this year’s first main stage production "She Killed the Monsters" will open on Thursday, which will include 10-foot puppets and monster costumes. (Emily Cohen/Daily Bruin)

This article was updated on November 17th at 11:47 PM

"She Killed the Monster" brought the fantasy adventure world to life.

This comedy, provided by the UCLA School of Drama, Film and Television, marks the first live performance of the season since the pandemic began, the opening performance on Thursday. "She Killed the Monster" is set in the mid-90s. It tells the story of a young woman who mourned the death of her sister when she started her journey to play Dungeons and Dragons, hoping to learn more about her lost brothers and sisters through her My sister's favorite game. As the original actor of the show, director Bruce Lemon Jr. stated that "She Killed the Monsters" features 10-foot puppets and fully realized monster costumes, so he chose to reproduce them for this work.

"This show is suitable for the natural game spirit that we played freely when we were young, so I think puppets...() are big toys, and the actors are all playmates," Lemon said. "We are all kids in a big sandbox, playing with toys and (playing) pretending."

Considering his love for puppets, Leman said he wanted to incorporate them into the show to seize the opportunity to make scenes such as fights with five-headed dragons. He said that the detailed work of the hands of the kobold creatures and the fur covering the larger monsters enhances the spectacle and overall experience of the production, as they transform the puppeteers into the monsters of Dungeons and Dragons, making them appealing to the audience.

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Kevin Williams, head of the props department, said that he and his students created full-scale versions of puppets, such as kobold creatures rehearsed using newspaper and kraft paper, as well as duct tape and masking tape. Williams said that in this way, actors can familiarize themselves with how to manipulate the puppets in advance, so that they can easily transition from the paper version to the real version, which is composed of heavier materials such as carved foam, wood, and fabric.

"Being able to create these puppets-these huge elements-(is) an interesting way to help emphasize the story," Williams said. "(It) tells more visual narratives through what we create with our students."

As the show's puppet instructor, the instructor Perry Daniel said that her job needs to teach actors the basics of puppet manipulation so that they can manipulate different styles of puppets and apply them to the storyline by playing the role of puppet monsters. In addition to providing feedback on the design of puppets, Daniel said that she also commented on how to sharpen and strengthen puppet combat in battle scenes with monsters such as Bugbears.

In addition, Williams said, the process of making other props for the show includes making custom fake weapons with foam to buying snacks such as Cheez Wiz for the hungry demon overlord. Regarding the more fantastical elements of the show, he said that he and his team have collaborated extensively with the clothing department on leather products and carved armor, especially shoulder armor.

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As the play dominates the magical world of Dungeons and Dragons, Lemon's realistic themes of sadness, bullying and friendship are inseparable from its imaginative background and plot. As an outsider of high school popularity level, he said that the main character can create an idealized self in the non-dual queer world of Newlandia. Daniel said that the puppets also work hard to modify and enhance the fantasy of the monsters and contribute to the potential story.

"Through the fantasy of that game and the high risk of fighting these monsters, (sister) accepted her love and sadness for her sister's death," Daniel said. "In a sense, the fantasy world of Dungeons and Dragons, more specifically the dolls and monsters, is the gateway for my sister to face her own loss."

In influencing his choice of director, Lemon said that the department's version "She Killed the Monster" is full of tribute to the basic idea of ​​the original show, and only those who have watched its 2011 premiere at the Flea Theater will know. In addition, he said that he pays tribute to the people who produced the show with him, which is where the tribute starts and stops, because the upcoming production is now owned by the students' ideas and their connection with the drama.

"This is what really connects the dragon with the dungeon and the world of drama.... It's about a group of people sitting together and pretending to believe that it feels great to escape to this new world," Lemmon said . "Hope we all continue to do this...because everyone here has made a choice...jointly participate in the practice of co-creating art and storytelling."

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