Hookman tells the story of Lexi, a college freshman who is haunted by the sudden death of her childhood best friend—all while navigating the pressures of being a young woman entering adulthood. My design concept for this production was to not only encompass the feeling of dread that looms over someone who’s haunted by their past choices, but also show the audience how human each of the characters really are. Using the tactics of both Special effects and practical items, I worked conceptually to make a universe that encompasses the magic desired by the director to create an otherworldly atmosphere wherein the events of Hookman take place.

In what playwright Lauren Yee describes as an “existential slasher comedy,” Hookman tells the story of Lexi, a college first-year student who is haunted by the sudden death of her childhood best friend—all while navigating the pressures of being a young woman entering adulthood. The production brings the horror film genre to the stage, inviting audiences to explore themes of grief, trauma, and guilt in an up close and personal way.

The first year at college is hard when your roommate is weird, you are feeling homesick, and a hook-handed serial killer is slashing girls’ throats. But if Lexi can discover what happened to her high school best friend on that car ride to the movies, everything will be okay. In this existential slasher comedy, Lexi and her friends learn what it means to grow up – and it is not pretty.