Erin Simons: Class of 2014

Erin Simons has great memories of her time on stage at PHS. But bringing characters to life didn’t end when she graduated. Nor did the benefits that being in theater provided her, she says. 
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Soon after graduation in 2014, Erin was cast as a member of the “Life in a Jar” production, a show that has taken her from Bangor, Maine, and Saratoga Springs, N.Y., to San Antonio, Texas.

The 80-minute traveling stage play shares the horrors of the Holocaust and the story of Irena Sendler, a courageous Polish Catholic woman who provided hiding locations for some 2,000 Jewish children in the Warsaw Ghetto in 1942. She kept their names written on slips of paper in a hidden jar.

Developed in 1989 by four Uniontown, Kansas High School students for a National History Day assignment based on the theme, “He who changes one person, changes the world entire,” the “Life in a Jar” story has been made into a television movie, an award-winning book, and has been performed more than 350 times across Europe and North America.

Simons read the book and immediately was impacted. After sharing her experience in high school theatre with the director, Norm Conard, the history teacher at Uniontown High School who helped facilitate the project, she was invited to join the cast as a Jewish mother, a blackmailer, and Sister Matylda.

Mr. Conard now serves as executive director of the newly complete Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes in Fort Scott, Kansas.

Erin, who attended Pittsburg State University, is attending Missouri State University at Springfield, where she is working toward a bachelor’s degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders with a masters in Education of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. She travels with the "Life in a Jar" troupe whenever possible.

“Being involved in theater has helped me so much in life, and with so many different aspects. Having the honor of being Drama Club president  taught me so much about being in a leadership position,” Erin says on her days at PHS.

“Because of theater I was able to break out of my shell and become willing to try new things, which has opened so many doors for me,” she says. “Being on stage has taught me all about presence, how to make a lasting impression, and how each person has something wonderful that makes them shine and stand out.”

“And I'm serious when I say that Shaw's famous line from our pre-show circle has helped me to remember to do my best and do what I can to help others at all times,” she says.
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"If something falls, pick it up. If someone falls, help them up."

“It applies a lot more in life than you'd ever think when you're standing in that pre-show circle!. I'm so grateful for how theater has shaped me into the person I am today!

Favorite shows at PHS: All Shook Up (featured dancer) and Honk (Penny) — shown above.
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Notable: In Dearly Beloved (2012), Erin played twin sisters Tina Jo and Gina Jo.

​Erin also sung in Encore under the direction of Susan Laushman.