Martha and Truman are hiding in an attic, scared. Then, someone in a shroud sneaks up behind him, but it turns out to just be Helen wrapped in a black blanket. Downstairs in the Lorraines' kitchen, Truman (now wearing an ice pack because he tripped and fell on his head) tries to claim he was only pretending to be scared and tells Helen she should be an actress. However, she declines, then reveals that she will be the ticket-maker for a science-related school play, but she is too shy to want a role.
The next day at school, Carolina addresses Helen as "Hailey" and calls her a "comet", confusing her. She gets even more confused in the hallway when Alice calls her by the same nickname, and asks what's going on. T.D. reveals that he, Alice, and Helen are all in the play, scaring Helen.
She goes to Mrs. Clusky and tells her she doesn't want to be in the play, but Mrs. Clusky reveals that Mariella told her that Helen was talented. She then reveals that Helen will be playing Hailey's comet, explaining the other kids' remarks, and that Mariella told Mrs. Clusky that Helen would claim not to want to be in the play, but not to believe her. She also reveals that Mariella asked for dog biscuits, causing Helen to suspect that it wasn't actually Mariella, but Martha impersonating her.
At home, Helen tells Martha off, but she confirms Helen's suspicions and says that she thought Helen would be happy. On the bus, Helen tries to get Danny to write her out of the school play, but he's keen on the idea of her performing in it. She tries telling Carolina she doesn't want to be in the play, but Carolina wants Helen to get to "shine".
The students do a dress rehearsal, but Helen first doesn't come onstage, then comes on too early, then shivers and sings too quietly and shyly. After school, Helen complains to TD about her poor performance skills and decides to quit, but Martha tells her not to give up so easily, then Carolina shows up and agrees with Martha. After Carolina tries somewhat unsuccessfully to give Helen a pep talk, Martha decides to have Helen practice in front of her. Helen practices in front of Martha, once with Carolina and once with Skits.
On the night of the play, Martha tries to give Helen moral support from backstage, but the janitor shoos her out for being a dog. She tries to squeeze through an open window, while Helen, despite her fear, manages to perform her role without Martha's help. However, when Carolina's solo comes up, she loses all traces of confidence and can't even speak. Luckily, Martha lip-synchs her.
This episode provides examples of
- Bat Out of Hell: Truman is scared at the possibility of bats in the attic.
- Cheesy Moon: Conversed when the students sing in the play that the moon is not made of cheese.
- Dramatic Irony: Mariella doesn't know that Martha was lip-synching Carolina and thinks Carolina was imitating Martha's voice.
- Dumb Struck: Carolina gets such bad stage fright she cannot even speak.
- Face Your Fears: Helen, despite having stage fright, manages to do her role in the play.
- Faking Another Person's Illness: Discussed. Helen tells Danny to pretend that she needs a tonsillectomy so she won't be in the school play, but he refuses.
- I Meant to Do That:
- After Truman runs and screams of what turns out to be a shrouded Helen, he claims he was just pretending to be afraid.
- When Carolina trips and falls, she tries to claim that she was practicing being the sun and "setting".
- Irony:
- Carolina tells Helen to try not to trip on the furniture, before tripping on a piece of furniture herself.
- Carolina never had stage fright before, and in fact was extremely cocky about being an actress... until she got her first solo line, that is, whereupon she developed stage fright even more severe than Helen's. Furthermore, she's helped by Martha, who she finds annoying.
- Mondegreen Gag: Due to being distracted trying to get a carrot into her mouth, Martha mishears "knack" as "snack". Then, when Helen tries to explain, Martha mishears it again as "nap".
- No Dogs Allowed: The janitor shoos Martha out of the school since dogs aren't allowed.
- Performance Anxiety:
- Helen is afraid to be in the school play because she's afraid of performing in front of others.
- While Carolina has never had stage fright before, when she has to do her first solo line, she develops such a bad case of it she can't talk.
- Pun: When Carolina is trying to quell her cousin's stage fright, she says, "It's your chance to shine like your cousin the sun" (since she's cast as the sun).
- School Play: The plot of this episode is that Helen's school is putting on a play related to astronomy and Helen is cast in the play despite not wanting to.
- Something Only They Would Say: Martha impersonated Mariella over the phone to Mrs. Clusky, who was fooled. Helen, however, figures out it was Martha when Mrs. Clusky reveals that "Mariella" asked for dog biscuits.
