Drama teacher and Director Angela Wertner will be leaving Moorestown Friends at the end of the end of the semester to spend more time with her 14-month-old baby, Louie, she announced earlier this month.
“It was a very, very difficult decision to make,” said Wertner. “It is very bittersweet because I love it here…and I love my students.”
Wertner said the Drama Director position is very large and has 12+ hour days two to three days per week throughout the entire year. These hours are necessary to teach classes, run rehearsals for the musical, the play, the middle school musical, and manage the stage technology components which accompany the rehearsals.
Wertner clarified that she is leaving on her own accord, and is not being pushed out by the administration: “I feel like I need to be there for him and so that’s what led me to make the difficult decision to be home with him.”
Wertner was hired as Drama teacher and director after Mark Gornto resigned the post in the Spring of 2015. She started in the Fall of 2015 with her first Upper School musical, Anything Goes. In March 2016, Wertner directed To Kill A Mockingbird for the Upper School play. She went on to direct You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown (Fall 2016), and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) (Winter 2017). She acted as producer of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (Fall 2017), which rehearsed and ran during Wertner’s maternity leave after the birth of her son.
Overseeing the first Winter play to rehearse during an elective block, Wertner directed “An Evening of Christopher Durang” (Winter 2018), which included three short plays: For Whom the Southern Belle Tolls, The Actor’s Nightmare, and Mrs. Bob Cratchit’s Wild Christmas Binge. The final MFS production to be solely directed by Wertner was this fall’s The Drowsy Chaperone.
Wertner will cast and begin rehearsals with the cast of this winter’s Almost, Maine.
Wertner has also directed The Wizard of Oz (Spring 2016), A Year with Frog and Toad Kids! (Spring 2017), and Freckleface Strawberry Jr. (Spring 2018) for the Middle School. Though she selected Mulan Jr. for this May’s performance, she will not be at MFS to cast or direct the show.
In addition to her role as director and technical director, Wertner acted as an Upper/Middle School advisor throughout her three and a half years at MFS. She also taught the fifth and sixth grade Theatre classes, as well as ninth grade Public Speaking. Wertner has taught many minors as well, including Acting & Directing, Theatre Sports, Stage Crew, American Musical Theatre, and Dance Team. She is also tasked with scheduling content for Upper and Middle School assemblies and running sound and lights during these assemblies if necessary.
In Fall 2015, Wertner and Senior Lizzie Cohen co-founded Dance Club, which has since grown into a competition team with a minor class requirement. Wertner is also the advisor for Drama Club, which has produced The Galloway Café, Rumors, and Harvey under her supervision and guidance.
The Cupola was dedicated to Wertner by the Class of 2017.
“Ms. W has helped to define my experience with the arts at MFS for all four years of high school. I cannot imagine my experience without her. I will miss her deeply,” said Senior Mariana Goldlust when asked to share a final message about Wertner’s impact.
Wertner will be greatly missed by all, especially the members of the Class of 2019, who were able to know her throughout all four years of Upper School. Angela Wertner has made excellent contributions to the MFS Drama Department and school community as a whole. On behalf of WordsWorth – thank you.
Serena Lin contributed to this report.
Editor’s note: The author of this article has participated in
many of the programs Wertner has taught and directed.
This originally appeared in the December 19, 2018 print edition.
