“Candles,” a play on the trauma of school shooting written by Harriton High School student Angelina DeMonte, premiered last week at Arden Theatre’s Hamilton Family Arts Center in Philadelphia, writes Sabrina Vourvoulias for the Generocity.

The play is Philadelphia Young Playwrights‘ first Barrymore-eligible production as well as its first full-length, self-produced play.

DeMonte was inspired by the experience and advocacy of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School students whose lives were impacted by the school shooting two years ago.

She also wrote the play to explore the effects and their varying intensity on young people faced with similar circumstances.

The protagonists in “Candles” are three Philadelphia-area high school students in the school newspaper club whose lives are affected when an armed student attacks the school.

“I created characters who are journalists, because as a writer, I understand how writers think – the ability and the drive to pick something apart in order to figure it out, to look deeper into questions that some people may be too scared to ask,” said DeMonte.

Poetry, spoken word, and music are all integrated into the production.

Read more about the play at the Generocity by clicking here.

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