Great undertaking: HAHS set to debut teacher’s original stage adaptation of Fitzgerald’s ‘The Great Gatsby’
HAHS set to debut teacher’s original stage adaptation of Fitzgerald’s ‘The Great Gatsby’
- Nick (Gideon Karn, center) talks to Daisy Buchanan (Alice Haslam, right) and Tom Buchanan (Ben Gervinski, left). Courtesy photo
- The cast of “The Great Gatsby” includes (from left to right): Row 1 (seated): Ben Gervinski, Alice Haslam, Sophia Waibel, Joseph McNicholas; Row 2 (standing): Liam Cannarsa, Shayne Andrews, Nathan Melbinger, Aran Corey, Jack Peterson, Rachel Daras, Ben Smith, Ryleigh Stollings, Gideon Karn, Luca Waibel, Levi Cruse, Bekah Bowser; Row 3: Izzy Larson, Sarah Willis, Abigail Boston, Grace Kephart, Amelia Darnell, Riley Foster, Sophia McClelland, Savannah Eardley, Ada Jones, Lena Ransom, Adrianna Spallone. Courtesy photo

Nick (Gideon Karn, center) talks to Daisy Buchanan (Alice Haslam, right) and Tom Buchanan (Ben Gervinski, left). Courtesy photo
After more than five years spent directing and co-directing plays at Hollidaysburg Area School District, English teacher Holly Mercer is ready to debut her first original production, a vivid retelling of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1925 novel, “The Great Gatsby.”
According to Mercer, the Jazz Age story was captivating from the first read-through and was an obvious choice to inspire her first script.
“I love this story, and it’s one I genuinely love teaching. I’m always looking forward to the unit — it’s probably my favorite of the whole year,” Mercer said.
Fitzgerald’s prose has a “lyrical” character, she said, which made it a natural fit for stage adaptation.
Mercer knew she wanted to direct a version of “The Great Gatsby” for the spring show for 2025 since early 2024 and began the preproduction process over summer break.

The cast of “The Great Gatsby” includes (from left to right): Row 1 (seated): Ben Gervinski, Alice Haslam, Sophia Waibel, Joseph McNicholas; Row 2 (standing): Liam Cannarsa, Shayne Andrews, Nathan Melbinger, Aran Corey, Jack Peterson, Rachel Daras, Ben Smith, Ryleigh Stollings, Gideon Karn, Luca Waibel, Levi Cruse, Bekah Bowser; Row 3: Izzy Larson, Sarah Willis, Abigail Boston, Grace Kephart, Amelia Darnell, Riley Foster, Sophia McClelland, Savannah Eardley, Ada Jones, Lena Ransom, Adrianna Spallone. Courtesy photo
“I spent the summer looking over different options of scripts (for ‘The Great Gatsby’) that currently existed, and I couldn’t find one that was the right fit for my cast of students,” Mercer said, “I’m very particular about what I look for in a ‘Great Gatsby’ adaptation, having read the novel as many times as I have.”
According to Mercer, much of the literary magic of the novel is conveyed through Fitzgerald’s distinct word choices and sentence construction, which is often lost in translation to the stage.
“One night last August in 2024, I thought to myself ‘well, if it does exist in the public domain, I could probably write my own version in the way I want to present it,’ and before I knew it, I had a first draft,” she said.
Creative works are considered public domain — where they are no longer the authors’ exclusive copyright and can be freely reinterpreted — if they were published before 1930, according to the University of California.
This applies to “The Great Gatsby,” which was published in 1925.
The Hollidaysburg Area Repertory Players actors were very excited when Mercer announced that they would be performing an original version after concluding the fall production of “Les Miserables: School Edition” in November 2024, she said.
The production began once students returned from winter break and went “really, really well” from the beginning, Mercer said.
“It’s been such a fun process to be a part of and to work with the students on this; they’ve taken such great care and effort in making sure they present the best possible version of the story we can,” Mercer said.
Mercer is currently teaching a unit on “The Great Gatsby” in her 12th grade honors English class that contains several of the current cast.
“I’ve had several of my students say that they wished they had an audiobook of our student Gideon Karn, who’s playing Nick Carraway, because they don’t feel like the story feels like the story without him narrating it,” she said.
As both director and script writer, Mercer has an usual level of flexibility in the production of the show.
Typically, most school drama departments license an existing show to produce, rendering them unable to make substantive changes to the script or blocking.
With “The Great Gatsby” production, Mercer said she can tweak things as necessary to better suit the strengths of each individual actor and the overall cast.
This has produced a highly collaborative environment during read-throughs and rehearsals, Mercer said.
“This is an experience I’ll likely never really be able to replicate again,” Mercer said.
While “The Great Gatsby” is her solo directorial debut at the senior high, Mercer said that longtime HARP director Stephanie Everett will assist as the show’s technical director.
“We have been a great collaborative team, and we continue to be a collaborative team for ‘The Great Gatsby,'” Mercer said. “(Everett) has had a really wonderful career at HASD; she has such enthusiasm for the arts and she has so many great ideas, so we’ve really done well working together.”
Mercer said she appreciates Everett’s mentorship and support throughout her time with HARP.
Mercer is a HASD and HARP alumna, and she said that returning to her former school as director is a full circle moment.
Since Mercer began directing shows at Hollidaysburg Area Junior High in 2016, some of the current cast are familiar faces.
Several members of the current cast are returning actors from some of Mercer’s first productions for the district, where she has watched their abilities develop over several years.
“It’s so cool to see the seniors and to think where they started to where they are now, and it’s really amazing to me,” she said.
This makes “The Great Gatsby” “a really cool way to conclude our time together,” Mercer said.
The feeling among the cast is mutual.
“This is my eighth show where I get to work with Ms. Mercer, and I feel lucky each time I get to do so. She has truly been such an influential figure in all of our theater journeys over the past years, and we get to learn new things from her with each show,” said Alice Haslam, a junior who plays the role of Daisy Buchanan.
Haslam’s co-star, senior Gideon Karn, said that it has been “a joy” to work with Mercer throughout his theater career.
“Having the same director across four productions brings a level of consistency that you can’t find anywhere else,” Karn said. “You get to the point where you understand how one another thinks, which makes you work together so well.”
Mirror Staff Writer Conner Goetz is at 814-946-7535.
‘The Great Gatsby’ Cast:
Nick Carraway – Gideon Karn
Jay Gatsby – Jack Peterson
Tom Buchanan – Benjamin Gervinski
Daisy Buchanan – Alice Haslam
Jordan Baker – Sophia Waibel
Police Officer – Abigail Boston
George Wilson – Aran Corey
Michaelis – Ben Smith
Myrtle Wilson – Rachel Daras
Salesperson – Liam Cannarsa
Dog – Sophia Mercer
Catherine – Ryleigh Stollings
Mr. McKee – Shayne Andrews
Mrs. McKee – Israel Larson
Cindy – Sophia McClelland
Lucille – Savannah Eardley
Owl Eyes – Sarah Willis
Maid – Adrianna Spallone
Meyer Wolfsheim – Nathan Melbinger
Klipspringer – Joseph McNicholas
Director – Levi Cruse
Actress – Grace Kephart
Mr. Sloan – Riley Foster
Mrs. Sloan – Ada Jones
Witness #1 – Amelia Darnell
Witness #2 – Rebekah Bowser
Henry Gatz – Luca Waibel
Crew
Director – Holly Mercer
Projection and Set Design – Stephanie Everett
Producer – Holly Mercer
Stage Managers – Adalyn Wilkins and Caleb Engle
Costumer – Terri Benton-Monahan
Set Construction – Joe Krupka
Backdrop Projection Technician – Stephanie Everett
Lighting Design – Nick Lashinsky
Sound Design – Brian McConnell
Sound Technician – Branden Miller
Box Office Manager – Kelly Black
Promotional Material Design – Rachel Daras
Stage Crew: Paige Brown, Ethan Donlan, David Fritz, Cindy Kobuck, Sophia Kochara, Jude Pascual, Levi Sensenig, Andrew Stump, John Vu
If you go
What: “The Great Gatsby”
When: 7 p.m. April 3-5
Where: Hollidaysburg Area Senior High School Auditorium
Tickets: $12 for adults, $8 for students and seniors. Available at the box office the day of the show or by calling 814-695-4416 ext. 7525 or emailing harp@hasdtigers.com
Synopsis: When Nick Carraway (Gideon Karn) moves in next door to the mysterious Jay Gatsby (Jack Peterson), he has no idea of the summer that lies ahead of him, as he gets swept into the past and present lives of Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan (Alice Haslam), Tom Buchanan (Benjamin Gervinski), Myrtle Wilson (Rachel Daras), Jordan Baker (Sophia Waibel), George Wilson (Aran Corey), Meyer Wolfsheim (Nathan Melbinger), Michaelis (Ben Smith), Catherine (Ryleigh Stollings), Henry Gatz (Luca Waibel) and Klipspringer (Joseph McNicholas), among many others. The Great Gatsby has been a novel and story that has stood the test of the 100 years since its publication because of its themes that transcend time, including the elusiveness of dreams, our capacity for wonder and the human desire to change or rewrite the past.