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With Utah’s recent change to moderate on the COVID transmission index, NS will now be allowed to have full in-person audiences for the school musical next month.
The musical, Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast,” will be held April 7-10 at 7 p.m. each night and will have a matinee on Saturday at 1 p.m. in the high school auditorium.
COVID has been a constant struggle for the musical this year. Everyone involved has been trying to find ways to make the experience as close to the same as it’s always been. One way they are doing this is by selling in person tickets just like they’ve done in years past.
Another thing they are hoping to do to get around COVID is a streaming of the performance. Once the shows are over, they will open up a streamed version. There will not be any live streaming of the shows.
“We will be filming it, then once it’s filmed and edited, we will stream it and let people pay to see the streaming. But there will not be an online zoom,” said Alex Barlow, the director of the musical.
This is one of the biggest shows NS has done and requires a lot of work.
“It is a huge show technical wise,” Barlow said. “I think it is actually the biggest musical we have done technical-wise, in terms of costumes, sets, and special effects.”
The musical takes up so much time for everyone involved. Members of the cast and crew have had to find a balance between the musical and other aspects of their personal lives.
“I do have a lot of other things going on in my life such as school and work, and all it takes is just some organization and dedication,” said Kylee Davis, who plays Belle. “Just planning stuff to make sure you have time for each and everything.”
The students have been putting in a lot of hours and they are very excited to perform. They are getting to the point where everything is starting to come together.
“The students are what make the show,” said Sarah Anderson, the musical’s choreographer. “They put in all of the work, and when you see them put in the work day after day after day, it can be a little discouraging for them because they don’t see the finished product. But as an adult watching them, I think it’s great to watch their eyes open as they start to see the magic happen.”
There are about 35 students in the cast and a few on tech crew, so all together, there are about 45-50 students involved in the musical.
“Once they get out there and start performing, it’s theirs,” Anderson said. “It’s no longer in my hands or in Mr. Barlow’s hands—it’s theirs, and you can see that exuberance in their faces when they start performing in front of an audience.”
There are many helping hands and creative minds involved in the musical. Some of the students have taken on the responsibility of making the costumes. Although it has been challenging, they find it fun to do something so unique.
“I think the hardest part was probably learning about how to work with appliances that maybe wouldn’t be originally in costumes,” said Shayley Fausett, who plays Mrs. Potts. “For instance, with the Wardrobe and Mrs. Potts, we made them out of PEX pipe and chicken wire. It took a lot of trial and error to get to that place.”
The musical “Beauty and the Beast” is a great show for people of all ages. It has a very important message that everyone part of the musical feels is worth sharing. They are also very happy to perform such a loved musical with so many deep messages within it.
“I like the story within the story,” said Anderson. “I really like the idea that you can’t look on what the outside is, you have to look on what your heart is. I actually really appreciate it. Even with that aspect, Beauty goes into her situation with a lot of prejudice and even she has to soften her heart in order to see the beauty within the Beast.”
Cast members believe that it will be easy for the audience to connect with the story and that they will be able to see parts of themselves in the characters they are watching on stage.
“I think it’s easy to connect with the characters,” Fausett said. “I think that’s what makes a good show—when you go and see it and you’re like, ‘Wow that resonated within me. I connect with this character. I connected with the show. I loved it.’ It’s good when somebody leaves with an emotional response, and I think “Beauty and the Beast” will give somebody an emotional response to remember.”
The cast and crew can’t wait to bring it to life and they hope to see everyone who can attend there.
“It’s going to be a really magical musical that I think people of all ages will love,” Barlow said.
