The sky was inky black. Lines formed outside Atholton. Tickets were in hand. It was 7pm on a chilly Friday night. The doors opened. People showed their tickets and made their way into the auditorium to sit. The lights flickered letting everyone know 5 minutes before the show started. The auditorium lights dimmed and the stage lights awoke.
It’s safe to say that the musical was a success. Many people showed up, and laughter filled the auditorium. As the musical ended and the applause died down, many cast and crew felt that the show was a success.
“It was a really good experience for it to be my first time in a production,” said Athoton freshman Josiah Wheeler.
Wheeler was in the musical as the main prince, Prince Dauntless “The Drab,” and overall he had a very positive experience. Another cast member, Aleena Farooqi shared her thoughts about the show.
“It was a super fun experience. I’ve done the musical before but I haven’t been the lead yet. So it was super cool to be in the lead in this.”
Farooqi was cast as the lead role, Princess Winniefred or Fred for short. She sang, danced, and created a magical atmosphere for everyone watching. Although production can be fun, it is also tedious.
Cast and crew stayed after school very late working on the musical to be sure that it was a success, “during tech week it was 9 a.m to 7 p.m, then 5 p.m to 10 p.m” Farooqi commented. Countless hours over months have been spent at school, all to bring a successful musical.
Aside from being in front of the bright lights, singing and dancing, the musical wouldn’t have been quite the success without the crew behind the scenes. Head of costumes, sophomore Sara Cochran, said a struggle she had to overcome was “getting our work done on time and making sure that everything is entirely ready” for opening night.
The costumes of the musical were very well done and it was all thanks to the costume department. “It was fun, but I’m glad that it’s over,” said Cochran. The tedious process of costuming burnt them out, but in front of the lights the costumes were beautiful.
Michael Bell, an attendee at Atholton’s Musical, loved the performance. He said, “I thought it was really fun.”
Bell has no association with Atholton, he came to the musical from an invite, and when asked about the process of getting into Atholton he commented that it was “smooth sailing” and didn’t have much trouble. Bell shared that his favorite parts were when Farooqi had her “little asides to the audience, that was really funny.”
The cast took their final bows and the applause roared, as the curtains closed the audience began to stand from their seats. Wide smiles and laughs were shared throughout the room. It was a musical to remember.