For three high school theater departments around Franklin County, this weekend will be the culmination of months of hard work preparing for the schools’ spring musicals.
Kayla Roth, Turners Falls music teacher and director of the Turners Falls High School and Great Falls Middle School show, said they held auditions in December and the group of students began work for “Lion King Jr.” when they returned from winter break in January.
She said the school selected the musical as a way to incorporate all age levels between the high school and the middle school. The leads are from the high school, but the ensemble cast is mostly middle school students, according to Roth.
She said they had several reasons for choosing the show but that ultimately it was a judge of the abilities of her students.
“Part of it was seeing the talent here and knowing the kids could pull it off,” Roth said.
Jordan Wyman, a senior at Turners Falls, is playing Rafiki in the production, and said the costumes and masks were all made by teachers and students in the school. It’s Wyman’s third Turners Falls musical, but she has previously been on crew, and this is her first show where she is cast in the musical. She said being involved at any level can be a good experience for a student.
“It creates a positive and creative outlet for those in the community, and everyone is accepted as part of the theater family,” Wyman said.
Roth said about 30 students are involved in the Turners Falls musical.
Similar numbers are involved in the musicals at Frontier Regional High School and Mohawk Regional High School.
Frontier is hosting “Guys and Dolls” this year, the school’s first musical in more than a decade, according to Frontier Music Department Director Max Sherrill.
The show has a large cast with plenty of ensemble, which ensures a lot of kids can participate.
“It allows many students to be involved, which is one of the reasons we chose this,” he said.
Mohawk is putting on kid-friendly “Shrek the Musical,” which director and Hampshire College senior Shira Gitlin said has helped incorporate some students from the elementary school into the ensemble cast.
She said of the 40 students involved in the Mohawk production, a handful of fifth- and sixth-graders are bussed from the elementary school several days a week. Gitlin said it helps build the program when students become interested early on.
“We’re giving them a taste of what’s next,” she said.
Gitlin said the school alternates between more serious and more playful productions, allowing students to work on a variety of shows.
The students are involved in every part of the play process, according to Gitlin. They repainted the theater’s walls, giving the entire theater more atmosphere, and they’ve been bringing in and creating costumes for the roles.
Musical: “Lion King Jr.”
Dates: March 16, 17 and 18
Time: Thursday and Friday, 7 p.m., Saturday, 2 p.m.
Tickets: Adults $8, students/seniors $6.
Musical: “Shrek the Musical”
Dates: March 17, 18 and 19
Time: Friday and Saturday, 7 p.m., Sunday 2 p.m.
Tickets: Adults $10, students/seniors $5.
Musical: “Guys and Dolls”
Dates: March 17, 18 and 19
Time: Friday and Saturday: 7 p.m., Sunday 2 p.m.
Tickets: Adults $10, $7 for students.