WMS GOES RETRO: Variety Show 2012

MY VISION:
Think of all the retro trends immersed into your 21st Century life!  We have a life full of ipods & ipads, where the 80s had kids who loved music just as much as you but jammed to cassette tapes.  We jump on YouTube to hear a popular song, where the kids from the 80s tuned into their television set with the creation of MTV.  People were passionate about their music and were not shy in broadcasting their big personalities.  Fashion included rock band t-shirts for the guys, neon colors, leg warmers, big hair, tons of make-up (especially blue eye-shadow!), and jeans everything.  The 80s brought about tons of things you call "vintage" today, such as:  movies like Star Wars, Back to Future, ET; celebrities like Michael Jackson, Madonna, Paula Abdul; tv shows like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the Smurfs, or Transformers; or even Game shows like Double Dare or the Gong Show.  

MY TALENT DOESN'T FIT THE 80s!

I realize your prepared talent might not fit into this 80s retro theme.  It's okay.  I want to see what you can bring to auditions -- so make sure your "talent" is prepared first of all and then see if you can add something retro into your act.  Stuck?  Ask your parents - they lived through the 80s!  Still stuck?  Throw your hair in a side ponytail and wear neon colors or your favorite t-shirt with a rock and roll twist.  I am looking for ways to weave this retro theme through the show and can do so in the form of time traveling to incorporate modern songs/acts (think Back to the Future or Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure) or even in the style of a live tv show with a MTV-theme.  

I am looking for a retro kind of variety for this show.  I want each act to be creative and ready to entertain.  Please HAVE FUN!  Please know that I want to include as many students as possible, but I am only choosing the top 30 acts to perform.  With this in mind, please know that not all of these acts will be solo acts.  If possible, it would be smart of you to team up with others, as there are only spots for 30 acts.  This is a VARIETY show, so I am looking for a variety of talents with a retro twist.

Booster deadline extended

Honk Jr. Booster deadline has been extended. Get your booster and booster money into the booster box on the stage by rehearsal on Monday, Feb. 6.

NO REHEARSAL FRIDAY, FEB 3

Hello Parents!

I hope you are having a wonderful Friday!  I sent an email to all parents this morning, but I wanted to make sure each and everyone of you gets this message.  There is NO rehearsal tonight.  I am canceling due to the Mark Woods concert, as well as a few other conflicts I was made aware of.  The great thing is that I feel completely fine about this decision.  I have worked your kids very hard this week!  We even ran the show last night AND had time to fix musical numbers afterwards.  The longer rehearsals have given me more time to work things as needed.  With that said, the tech team was already called off for tonight, and after checking with costumes, your students are not needed tonight.  Please encourage them to get some extra rest for our big rehearsal tomorrow!  Also, I hope the tweak in schedule will allow your evening not to be as crazy as anticipated.  I don't mind being flexible to family and school events, especially since we ran the show last night.  Please encourage your students to bring their A-GAME on Saturday!  We are certainly making great progress, but I do believe each student can give me a little more.  Enjoy your evening!

PS:  Don't forget that our rehearsal was extended for Saturday earlier on in the week.  Here is the schedule for tomorrow:

9:00 - 2:00ish:  Finish the set!  All parents are welcome to attend - we'd love you to be there!

11:00 - 1:00:  Student Group Vocal Lesson with Bill Seale - please bring student vocal books for review

1:00 - 2:00:  Teach Curtain Call/Warts & All Reprise

2:00 - 3:30:  Run show on stage

I am also asking the office to make an announcement to all the students today, just to make sure everyone gets the message.

Thank you again!

Miss Cindy

Laundry Basket Assignments

Please see the below list for where you will "PARK" your laundry baskets for the show.  Please remember that all students should have something on underneath that can be seen in mixed company.  Due to several quick costume changes and/or not much time in between when actors/actresses are needed on stage, I have assigned every child a spot.  This is not in order of appearance in the show or even how large or small a part is (as we all know, this is a TEAM effort!).  Honk Jr. moves very quickly, so I want to make sure all students are ready for each scene and are accounted for.

This year, we have a backstage manager and a green room manager that will call cues.  These two tech crew kids will be looking for these kids in the assigned areas below.  It is very important that when not on stage (or in any down time), the cast stays in their assigned spots.  The below spots are where this child will go in between scenes and/or get ready for their next scene.

Room off STAGE RIGHT:
Melissa Campbell
Nolan Morley
Alex Kopnick
Evan Morley
Elijah Feazell
Symantha Rathbone
Ellie Donnelly

PROP ROOM:
Matthew Bonner
David Eason
Ethan Kahn
Ian Fridy
Jacob Olausen
Christian Robles

GREEN ROOM:
Terra Forsythe
Tess Young
Sophie Harrison
Grayce Akers
Quinn Steifbold
Katie Zackerman
Isabella de Jesus

Jadyn Colllingsworth

Kaelyn Cortes

Addison Burke

Madeline Morstadt

Olivia Newfarth

Maddie Henke 

Lucy Walton


STAIRWELL (next to the Green Room):

Janey Elliott
Margot Grom
Monica Unzueta
Deja Gause
Elena Skidmore
Ellen Boster

Abby Casada 

Molly Mariani

Kelsey Jobalia

Olivia Ardo

Anna Zidarescu

Ella Hipsley

Ticket Flyer

Please feel free to pass out to your friends and family!

Stage Crew

First and foremost, thank you to all who submitted resumes to be a part of tech crew.  I am trying something new this year due to feedback and experiences from past shows.  From a director's standpoint, I wanted students who really wanted to be on tech crew, not just students who were not cast in the play and automatically fell into the category of stage crew.  In order to achieve this, I decided to initiate an interview process, along with the creation of a resume and a specific audition form after auditions for the musical.  I have had trouble in the past with tech crew students running around the theater instead of taking care of their assigned tasks and showing leadership qualities.  To try to change that, I wanted tech crew students to actually audition and turn in resumes like all of the other students have to do in order to be considered for a role in the play.  Being a part of the tech crew comes with some very heavy responsibilities, as I count on these students to help make the show even better.   I take this very seriously and want each student to know that their role on tech crew is as important as any other cast or crew member.

With this said, every student who turned in an audition form and resume received an interview.  He or she was interviewed one-on-one by our Stage Manager, as well as met with the director.  On the blog entry giving the audition form for stage crew, I stated that I was only looking to fill 5-10 roles.  Unfortunately, I could not cast everyone.  Please know that the final decision was made by the director, after reviewing all resumes, audition forms, audition notes, as well as considering behavior and leadership within the interviews.  No stage crew roles were pre-cast except my Stage Manager, whom I chose before beginning the show process.  This role is designated by the director, just like Hair, Costumes, Make-up, etc.  These students have been working directly with me since the beginning of the rehearsal process.

I had some excited students who were interested in tech crew, and I thank you for your interest.  Please know that just like the play, I had several really talented students who auditioned, but I could not cast everyone.  Due to our time frame and our on and off stage area, I can only cast a limited number of students.   I would encourage you to audition in the future for the role you have in mind - whether on stage or behind the scenes.

For those that were cast, I am excited to embark on this journey together.  Please see below for the final list of additions to our wonderful team!!  TECH CREW:  Due to Mark Wood's concert on Friday, you are not required to come until this Saturday at 9:00.  Please watch for communication from our Stage Manager for more details.

Stage Manager: Alexander Nocks
Assistant Stage Manager/Lights: Sean Madden
Backstage Manager: Seth DeWitt
Green Room Manager: Audrey Eymen
Sound: Caroline Theile
Stage Right: Sophia Abrams
Stage Managers in Training: Joel Engelhardt and Grace Hitt

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