How many times have we heard these phrases in our lives? “It’s all in your head.” “Life’s what you make of it.” “We create our own problems.”

In Linganore Drama’s production of Mind Games, a one-act play, part of the larger themed night The Nightmare Zone, senior Lincoln Robisch plays a therapist with an interesting patient. When a session ends with the doctor telling his patient, Kyle, “you’re doing all of this to yourself,” Kyle takes that quite literally.

This play explores Kyle’s realization that he truly is creating the universe and everything around him. This, on its own, would already be an exciting enough premise for a show, but it becomes even more fascinating when the audience learns that Kyle is played by Class of 2018 member Christian Howard, who is legally blind.

Linganore’s first blind student, Howard has been involved in drama productions all three years of high school, but this is his first principal role. He participated in Anything Goes, Our Town, and The Sound of Music.

Student director Garrett Wiehler said, “There are definitely some challenges in directing a blind actor. Christian does really well at accepting blocking notes and is the most dedicated actor across the three shows (in The Nightmare Zone). The decision to cast him wasn’t based on his blindness; it was based on his acting prowess. The fact that he’s blind just adds another dimension to the story.”

Howard already creates his own world and maps in his head on a daily basis, and adding this aspect into the character of Kyle in this show creates a deeper meaning to the intensity of the realization that the world is literally in his mind, and in his control.

“In a way, being blind makes me less restricted than other actors. Everyone else can be restricted by just focusing on what they see visually,” said Howard. Howard is forced to focus more on his movements, which can be very beneficial for the show.

Tickets to see Howard, and the rest of the cast of The Nightmare Zone, are on sale now at showtix4u.com  for $10, and will be available at the door. The show will hold performances on November 10th at 7:00, the 11th at 7:00, the 12th at 2:00 and 7:00, and the 13th at 2:00. Follow @LHSDrama on Twitter for updates on shows and drama news.