Whitehall High School students prepare backstage before their play, “I Don’t Want to Talk About it,” at the State Thespian Festival on Friday, January 24, 2025.
Stage props for “I Don’t Want to Talk About it” at the State Thespian Festival on Friday, January 24, 2025.
Palyne Lucas, 14, gets a squirt of makeup from Ierlyn Kelley, 15, before performing “I Don’t Want to Talk About it” at the State Thespian Festival on Friday, January 24, 2025.
Whitehall High School students prepare the stage for their performance of “I Don’t Want to Talk About it” at the State Thespian Festival on Friday, January 24, 2025. Whitehall High School blocked the performance of the play, despite months of rehearsals, because of the play's focus on suicide.
Lele Martin, 17, takes a big breath backstage before performing the lead role for “I Don’t Want to Talk About it” at the State Thespian Festival on Friday, January 24, 2025. Whitehall school administration blocked the performance of the play, despite months of rehearsals, because of the play's focus on suicide.
Whitehall High School senior, Lele Martin, 17, performed the lead role for “I Don’t Want to Talk About It,” at the State Thespian Festival on Friday, January 24, 2025. "This play is a blank canvas for what every teenager might go through," Martin said.
After their high school told them they couldn’t perform their play because of its focus on suicide, about a dozen students from Whitehall High School performed “I Don’t Want to Talk About it” at the State Thespian Festival on Friday, January 24, 2025.
Whitehall High School senior, L Farley, 18, poses for a portrait after performing, “I Don’t Want to Talk About It,” at the State Thespian Festival on Friday, January 24, 2025. Farley believes the play, which talks about suicide, is a lot more effective at reaching youth than a school presentation. Nearly a quarter of youth in Jefferson County considered suicide in 2023, according to the most recent Montana Youth Risk Behavior Survey.
Practicing lines before performing, “I Don’t Want to Talk About It,” at the State Thespian Festival on Friday, January 24, 2025.
Whitehall High School sophmore, Rolan Beati, 15, poses for a portrait after performing, “I Don’t Want to Talk About It,” at the State Thespian Festival on Friday, January 24, 2025.
After their high school told them they couldn’t perform their play because of its focus on suicide, about a dozen students from Whitehall High School performed “I Don’t Want to Talk About it” at the State Thespian Festival on Friday, January 24, 2025. Nearly a quarter of youth in Jefferson County considered suicide in 2023, according to the most recent Montana Youth Risk Behavior Survey.
Whitehall High School student, L Farley, 18, giddy with excitement after performing at the State Thespian Festival on Friday, January 24, 2025.
Whitehall drama director Liz Pullman, 42, and lead Lele Martin, 17, share a hug behind the stage after performing, “I Don’t Want to Talk About It,” at the State Thespian Festival on Friday, January 24, 2025.
Whitehall drama director, Liz Pullman, 42, poses for a portrait at the State Thespian Festival on Friday, January 24, 2025. Pullman was pressured to resign by the Whitehall school administration after performing the play.