Last week, the middle school’s performing arts department held its annual fall plays, treating audiences to staged versions of two classic tales by Washington Irving, “Rip Van Winkle” and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.”

Middle school theater teacher Katie Champlin directed both plays, each of which featured multiple roles for narrators and storytellers, moving the plots at a brisk pace without losing the dramatic effect. The sixth graders’ version of “Rip Van Winkle” contained many of Irving’s original words, and students used percussion instruments to create sound effects reminiscent of the Catskill Mountains, where the story takes place.

“The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” a grades 7-8 production, was a comedy-infused retelling of the frightful tale of Ichabod Crane’s encounter with the terrifying Headless Horseman. For the finale, several students played the part of Sleepy Hollow’s whirling trees during the Headless Horseman’s legendary ride.