On February 5, 2026, the student-directed one-act play “Party of One,” written and directed by senior Imani Bell, premiered. What began as a script Bell wrote during her junior year acting class culminated in her directorial debut on the Academy stage–a part of her final project for her last acting class. It now has the distinction of being an award-winning play, receiving a superior ranking at the District Thespian Festival.

Bell, as well as her entire cast and crew, have been working hard on this project since the fall semester and are so excited to share it with the rest of the school.

Bell has been taking acting classes at the Academy since her freshman year. She began in Performing Arts teacher Vivian  Kimbler’s Intro to Acting class, then moved into Advanced Acting I her sophomore year, Advanced Acting II her junior year, and finally Advanced Acting III her senior year. 

“‘Party of One’ was a bit difficult to write because I’m so used to acting in plays that are already written rather than writing my own with my own creative liberty,” said Bell. 

The play follows a girl named Hazel who has a house party and invites all of her friends, but throughout the night each guest starts mysteriously disappearing, revealing a truth about Hazel’s imagination. It represents the negative effects of nostalgia, isolation, and separation from reality.

Alongside Bell’s directing were actors Sara Perez (‘27), Gigi Luka (‘27), Isla Paone (‘28), Eden Smith (‘28), and Gabriella Suarez-Vargas (‘28).

“‘Party of One’ was such an amazing experience,” said Isla Paone (‘28). “It was so fun to develop our characters and embrace our creativity in order to create such a fun show.”

Additionally, Bell shares her process through which she wrote her play. “I decided to make something that was both comedic and tragic, with a bit of a plot twist,” she said. “When it was done, I wasn’t sure how people would like it, but I was both surprised and relieved that it received a superior at Thespys.”

“This show allowed me to explore my creativity and what I could build with my character,” said Gabriella Suarez-Vargas (‘28). “It was a wonderful experience.”

Bell shares that she has grown through the acting program and gained skills that she can use after she leaves the Academy.

“My acting classes have helped me become less and less shy about my work and more eager to share my talent with everyone, and I plan to take this with me all the way to college.”