After months of practice, students were able to demonstrate their efforts in the musical. While the musical itself was very vibrant and exciting, the bond that the performers built was beyond priceless.
Dr. Markley says that he’s “absolutely thrilled” about how opening night turned out. Some students even called the show perfect, with no possible improvements.
Although the cast started small, their efforts were mighty, singing with enthusiasm and precise timing, thanks to Dr. Markley and Mr. Kohler. The hours spent rehearsing ensured that the cast and crew formed a close-knit environment. According to cast member Shria Malay (‘27), “We started as just a cast, but now we’re a group of friends.”
The students’ motivations for joining were very diverse. Malay (‘27) joined after her brother first started appearing in the musical and because she’s “done it every year and it’s just habit.” Deuce Chanos (‘28) says he joined because it has always been fun and his “dad is an actor so he got me into it.” On the other hand, Pamela Yi (‘29) joined to “grow her social skills” and become a better public speaker.
The beginning of rehearsals began in Dr. Markley’s room, where the cast spent time learning songs and familiarizing themselves with each other. As time progressed, they went to the auditorium to choreograph dances and stage performances. Over January, students began to re-learn all of the dances after a forgetful winter break.
While the show commences seamlessly on stage, the backstage is filled with unheard conversations and unseen moments spent together in peace and anxiousness. Malay (‘27) says that her favorite part about being in the show is what goes on backstage because “It relaxes her and gets her ready.”
Some of the most under-appreciated contributors are in the crew. Without the crew, the show wouldn’t be nearly as bright, colorful, or well-staged as it was. According to Carter Hayden (‘27), the crew is “usually backstage setting up the stage for the next song or making something for the show.” Some of their other responsibilities include preparing the cast, adjusting the lights, and working in the sound booth.
The experience in the crew helped many students build lifelong skills. For Hayden (‘27), this included learning to build a community and how a stage works. This helped him acquire an understanding of how a show’s set is built and “understand all the work and effort that went into it.” For Camille Burbach (‘29), working in the crew helped her improve her team leadership, improvisation, and “working quickly because you don’t have all the time in the world to set up everything.”
Like the crew, the cast learned some valuable lessons from their experiences too. In a more literal sense of the phrase, they learned how to act and improve their memorization skills. Along with that, they learned the importance of hard work and portraying a role well enough to stand out. Malay (‘22) acquired a better comprehension of community and understanding that, “Everyone’s different but we’re all the same. We’re one group of people who love theater.” Lucy McEachen (‘27) learned that “Even though it’s hard, persevere through rough rehearsals, the end performance is worth it.”
The show coming to an end has resulted in a bittersweet feeling within the cast. On one hand, they were excited to perform and display their hard work. On the other hand, their time in this year’s musical and spending hours a day together was coming to an end.
Under Dr. Markley and Mr. Kohler’s guidance, the show’s cast and crew thrived. Dr. Markley stated that his goal is to “treat these productions as young professional productions” while still having fun. With this combination of focus and liveliness, the show’s cast managed to build a family-like bond. Brandon Wilson (‘28) says more people should join the production next year because it is a “great way to make friends and connect with people.”
Everyone in the cast and crew should be immensely proud of themselves for being involved in such a skillful performance and learning the importance of building a community. Hopefully, their work has inspired you to come to this show and continue supporting these performers in later shows throughout middle and upper school.
