Behind the Curtain:

Battle High School is putting on Rodger and Hammerstein’s Cinderella the Musical, and I was thinking about all of the hard work that goes into for the musical for it to work. I have been to some of the tech club meetings and the Theater Tech class and I have noticed the amount of work that the crew has to put in. From things as minimal as painting, to something as huge as building 16 feet tall archways, or arranging lights. The tech crew know exactly what needs to be done, and when. Although they may not get the recognition they deserve, they just enjoy being part of the crew. When asked about how he feels about getting recognition, Hayden Elder said, “I don’t care honestly, I’m just having fun and I don’t need recognition.” On the other hand, Julian Richardson thinks that is frustrating because so much stuff happens behind the scene and people often forget that. Austin McMeans is very indifferent when it comes to the matter, stating, “It doesn’t matter to me, I just don’t want anyone to die!” The technical crew is a vital part of the play. They build sets and set the scene for the actors. Whenever you watch a play or musical and the sets are amazing, you become even more entranced with the production.

From the Crowd:

I was lucky enough to watch what happens during the Cinderella play practices. When you watch a play, do you ever realize that almost everything is in perfect sync?It may be difficult to understand how hard it is to get ready for a show and how much practice it takes. For example, in a scene there are counts: 1,2,3,4,1,2,3,4, over and over again. It is so complicated having to remember what counts to go in on, what count to start running, and when to fall back. Julian Richardson, a featured dancer in the play, told us what it’s like practicing: “for all company practices we run through scenes, and featured dancers practice their dances a lot.” I was also told by Julian that although it’s long and difficult, practice is fun, and everyone is committed. I asked a few students that are in the play why they decided to be involved in Cinderella and I got many insightful answers. Bethani Thompson, the younger sister (villager) said, “it seemed like fun, I also was in the all-school play at Oakland and had such a great time.” Mikah Matthews, a mouse and featured dancer said, “it’s fun, it’s a wonderful extra-curricular activity to express yourselves in a way you never knew you could, people will accept the way you are, and it’s a way to get out of your house.” I also got to interview the lovely Cinderella that is played by Catera Combs and asked her how she managed to get the lead role. She said, “I got the role with hard work, they have seen my acting in previous plays and I guess that kinda helped.” Catera told me she was in the Little Shop of Horrors last year at Battle, and over the summer she did 13 with Columbia College local arts intensive program. I also interviewed the Prince that is played by Cole Flottman. Cole said, “I like being able to show off my talents, being able to act and sing so when I get an opportunity, I like taking it”. The play is going to be held at Battle in the Performing Arts Center from November 13th through the 15th. Just like Julian Richardson said: “Everyone should come to the play because it’s going to be awesome”. See ya there!