(courtesy The Columbus Dispatch)
9 September 2004 - By Mary C. Bridgman


(News photo by Jeff Hinckley)
Hilliard Davidson High School seniors Nick Story and Diana Zambrotta perform in the 90-minute drama The Guys.

Diana Zambrotta and Nick Story have been reliving 9/11 almost daily for three weeks, honoring those who paid the ultimate price.

This morning, the two Hilliard Davidson High School seniors will perform The Guys, a 90-minute drama about a writer’s efforts to help a fire captain write eulogies for four of his men who died in the rubble.

The day the terrorists attacked, Zambrotta, a native New Yorker with family in Manhattan, was scared for her loved ones.

As the third anniversary approaches, she is scared for her country.

Americans have forgotten too much, she says, and take too much for granted. "We are back to where we were," before the terrorists struck.

Story recalled his anger after the attack. "I wanted revenge," he said.

The actors, both 17, say Americans must remember the horror of 9/11 and the togetherness and patriotism that followed.

The Guys was born shortly after the attacks, when playwright Anne Nelson was desperately looking for a way to contribute. An acquaintance hooked her up with a captain dealing with the loss of fellow firefighters.

The play is a semiautobiographical version of their conversations. Zambrotta plays the editor, Joan, and Story plays the captain, Nick.

The news media had made his men into heroes he didn’t recognize, Nick tells Joan; he wants to honor them as the men he knew.

Bill — He was just an ordinary guy. A schmo. If Bill walked into a room, nobody would even notice. You can’t say that in a eulogy.

Nick talks about each firefighter; Joan writes. Always, they are reminded of the sacrifice the men made to try to save people.

We know that Bill and the other firefighters of New York saved thousands of lives that day.

Zambrotta and Story were selected for the play last spring by director Robin Brenneman and technical director Diana Vance. Both are English teachers.

"There was no doubt in my mind I wanted to do this," Zambrotta said. "It’s a lot of pressure: I want to do these people justice."

Living with Sept. 11 for the past three weeks has made an impact.

"We tried to go through (the script) twice at the rehearsals, but it was too emotionally taxing," Zambrotta said. "There were times I could cry and cry and cry, and other times I was just too numb to cry."

The Guys will be presented to the public at 8 p.m. Friday at Hilliard Davidson High School, 5100 Davidson Rd. Admission is free.

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