As the production for Woodside’s Spring Musical Footloose begins this week with the first show on March 15th, there are aspects of theater many wish to still share. 

Being a part of a cast is a very demanding process, however, many benefits come from being with a group of people for so long. 

“I like the community that you build while you’re doing a project,” senior Roxanne Bobo said. “You get to meet a lot of new people and make more connections along with making better connections with people you already know.”

Working alongside a group of people for an extended period helps many not only make special connections but also special traditions that others typically wouldn’t understand.

“There are several [traditions] one being that there’s a hand dryer in the girl’s bathroom and his name is Murphy because he turns on by himself,” senior Katherine Chernykh said. 

Another tradition that the musical cast participates in is very similar to other extracurricular activities in which they celebrate their seniors and other staff members. 

“We have speeches so juniors normally give speeches to the seniors who are in the cast that are going away and the same thing for the tech crew,” Hodges said. “Then the seniors in tech and the cast give speeches to our directors, stage managers, and vocal managers.” 

There are an abundance of roles that help contribute to the overall success and production of a musical. For example, students within the cast expressed gratitude towards Megan Souther who is currently the stage manager.

“She’s the one who always sends out reminders of when we have rehearsal and handles scheduling,” senior Paige Rienhart said. 

Along with this, there are moving parts to consider when watching the school musical. One is the fundamental aid and contributions the tech crew makes. 

“We don’t talk about tech enough,” Hodges said. “You can’t do a show without tech and they’re all amazing about making sure all of our sets are on stage.”