The North Bergen High School in New Jersey has recreated Ridley Scott’s 1979 sci-fi horror Alien for its latest school play, making the school a viral sensation overnight.
Drama teacher Perfecto Cuervo and his team spent eight months planning Alien: The Play, producing every iconic element from the cult film. From the Xenomorph to the Facehugger, North Bergen’s drama department pulled out all the stops for this dramatic rendition, which showed to parents and locals.
A Reddit thread details the extent to which the drama department went to on its adaptation, showing full-body Alien suits and the extensive set production. One redditor explained how the drama department followed the film scene-for-scene, and that in its spare time, the Alien walked around the audience to "kill time."
Cuervo told Entertainment Weekly that he loved the movie, and that the school’s art instructor Steven Defendini said that recreating the classic film made for a collaboration of three teachers and 16 students, adding "we’re a real small drama program, so we’re used to doing small plays for the local community."
The Xenomorph was a particular highlight in the adaptation, with Defendini saying "we shaved down the foam and bought a plastic skeleton head at Target on clearance and painted it black." Noting its success, the Alien franchise’s official Twitter page went on to praise the NJ high school themselves.
Take a look at the trailer the school put together above and let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
In other unlikely performances, Jordan Peele revealed he cameoed in his hit film Us.
A parent filmed the facehugger scene. pic.twitter.com/oamxaxikM2
— Paul Owens (@oh_pollo) March 23, 2019
We are impressed! 40 years and still going strong… https://t.co/NJGJIZj2oq
— Alien (@AlienAnthology) March 23, 2019