Your Last Musical in High School

College Majors Musical Theater Major
1

<p>I'm betting that many of us are currently in the same boat; working on our last musical in high school, either as a performer, technician or parent.</p>

<p>D's final HS musical opens this week, and my experience (and hers) is bittersweet. We'll REALLY miss seeing D on stage in our own backyard, but I WON'T miss those frantic last-minute runs for the perfect costume piece or to find an acceptable wig or dealing with last-minute ticketing issues. I know D will miss her friends and the terrific new Director her school finally got during her Senior year, but she CAN'T WAIT for higher production values and better-trained peers in college... plus she won't miss the inevitable shock-buzz in the community whenever a HS attempts anything that's not rated G.</p>

<p>I'd love to hear how others are feeling about your final HS musical, as well as hearing from any college students about how your college productions differ from your HS experiences.</p>

2

<p>Okay, this is officially going to make me cry. I’m already feeling nostalgic and our last show is over a year away!!!</p>

3

<p>Last h.s. musical was early March. Like MomCares, we FINALLY got a decent director senior year. I positively adored watching kid in her fall play and spring musical, and am more than happy that we are out of the “drama drama” that goes on around all these shows. She, too is looking forward to the big-time at a program full of kids who live theatre (location yet to be determined…but we’re getting closer to being able to make a decision).</p>

4

<p>Yes, that great HS Director can really make all the difference, and it is a shame when they arrive for the last musical of Senior year! D’s old HS director actually came to the first rehearsal of one musical having NEVER seen the show or even read the script! Then another year she unexpectedly left town for the final 3 weeks of rehearsals. Oops!</p>

<p>Other memorable HS theatre experiences include the kids who forgot to put on parts of their costumes and ran onstage in various states of undress, and of course those folks who couldn’t carry a tune and yet were cast in large roles (oh wait… maybe that happens on Broadway sometimes, too ;-).</p>

<p>There are few things like the camaraderie of a group of HS theatre kids who have been together since grade school, but I’m guessing new bonds form quickly in college, when you move into a group of folks as passionate about the craft as you are.</p>

5

<p>Unfortunately, my school’s theatre department has been pretty much dying since my sophomore year, so no high school musicals for me since then. I would have loved to be able to perform in a role my senior year, especially since a rival high school of ours is putting on “Hairspray” right next door. I can’t help but be quite jealous.</p>

<p>Oh well, on to college. Bigger and better things await! :)</p>

6

<p>My D has been blessed with a wonderful musical Dr all 4 years! She is in rehearsal for Les Miz as we speak with her final performances the 1st 2 weekends in April. It is going to be so bittersweet! But it is time to move on to bigger and better hopefully!!</p>

7

<p>My son’s final high school musical was last weekend. He and I and the rest of the family will miss the highschool shows. His school has an incredible director and their production of Carnival this year was everything we had hoped.</p>

<p>I think what most impressed me was the number of kids who had graduated over the last couple of years (and participated in prior shows) who came back solely to see the show. Two boys actually came to all three performances. My son has said that he will definitely come back next year to see his friends perform.</p>

<p>Our other big news is that the awards program that the school participates in is going to participate in the national theatre awards (jimmys) this year for the first time. The winner of best male and female in lead roles will go to NYC for five days of workshops with broadway professionals before the awards show.</p>

8

<p>My daughter’s last one was this past fall.</p>

<p>All I can say about the past four years at her high school is that I know she’s going to love her professors and directors in college, because even though I know there are artistic personalities, egos and quirks involved, I guarantee anyone paying through the nose for tuition wouldn’t put up with what she’s had to put up with for more than one semester, and I do not believe for one minute that any school with a half decent theater reputation won’t be a huge improvement over what she’s dealt with.</p>

<p>The good news is that she’s ready for ANYTHING. : -)</p>

<p>No I wont’ miss it. Now dance on the other hand…I love her school and her dance teachers dearly, it has been part of our lives for 14 years, and when the director gives the speech she always does at D’s last ever recital, to the graduating seniors, about only letting them leave on the condition that they finish their education because it’s so important, and how the door of the studio is always open to them and that no matter what happens in life, that they can always count on one thing, that ballet always begins at the barre…</p>

<p>I am going to bawl huge huge buckets of big sloppy tears…</p>

9

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<p>That sounds awesome – I’d never heard of the Jimmy’s! Our HS participates in an all-state awards program which is quite impressive, but it would be cool if that fed into a National awards program. OTOH, sending D to NYC is probably to pre-tuition expense we can do without.</p>

<p>Yes, about those crocodile tears… I can sense them in our not-too-distant HS musical future!</p>

10

<p>Yes, ditto, ditto, ditto to everything that has been said above re: poor directors, the camaraderie and the bittersweet nature of the last H.S. musical!!! S’s final production was last weekend. We were very proud and very glad when it was over. Looking forward to going onward and upward!</p>

11

<p>My D’s story is a little different when it comes to last musical in high school. Her last year of high school was her junior year (graduated a year early). She was cast as Ado Annie in Oklahoma and was in rehearsals during the college audition season in fact. A week after her final college audition in March, she was in a very serious car crash and severely injured (intensive care, surgery, etc.). She was out of EVERYTHING. She was no longer in the musical (her best friend was her understudy and took over the role) or her final dance performances after 10 years at her dance studio and much more. Of course, in the scheme of things, her survival and recovery was all that mattered, but she was out of all her high school “lasts” pretty much. She received a few of her college acceptances in the hospital. It was sad, of course, to miss her final high school and local performances. Her first day out of a hospital bed after three weeks, she attended opening night of her final school musical, in the audience and the following day, attended open house at her prospective college, in a wheelchair. At her final dance performance, which she no longer was dancing of course (forgot to say she also was on crutches and had five screws in her hip too), the seniors in her select jazz repertory group traditionally perform their own special dance and that year there were three girls only. This was something my daughter looked to for years, but could not dance. In fact, the final show was her first day actually walking. It so happened that the “senior” dancers danced to Imagine (by McCartney, but sung by Eva Cassidy) and that same year, my D had recorded a CD of Eva Cassidy’s version, as part of a recording studio project. So, the dance studio director did something they never do, as they use recorded music in the dance performances only, but for this one time, as my D was one of three graduates in their select troupe and had also danced there almost every day for years, is she had my daughter sing the song live with my husband accompanying her on guitar while the other two girls danced. It was a nice way to get to participate. </p>

<p>While not at our high school, she did go back to her summer program out of state for a session and so that July she got to play Lucy in Jekyl and Hyde, and I have to say that unlike the tears I had at my other daughter’s “lasts” in high school, which I missed with D2 who was out of everything, I had tears at Jekyl and Hyde because it was like a “first,” in the sense that it was like she returned to life and had a second chance and returned to her life on stage. Can’t describe it but it was emotional. There is a photo in her surgeon’s office of her doing a kick line in that show just four months after her accident. </p>

<p>As far as how high school and college shows differ…well, one way they REALLY differ is that it is FAR more competitive to be cast in a BFA production than our high school!! My daughter was the lead in our high school shows, starting in 7th grade (as a middle schooler, she was allowed to audition for the high school shows and opted to do that, and not her middle school shows) and in college, there are lots of kids who have been leads and are very very talented. She still did well in college and was lucky but I have to say that it is MUCH harder to be cast in college than high school and then much harder professionally after college than in college (even more very very talented people in the audition pool in NYC). </p>

<p>I guess one other difference is some college shows (at least at her college) were more risque than what the high school tended to put on. Another difference I just thought of is that in college, they sometimes staged new works and that is not the case in high school. Another thing in college (at least at her college) is that in addition to faculty directed productions, there are also student-run productions.</p>

12

<p>Your daughter’s story is amazing, and I would have have a really hard time seeing my D miss out on all her “lasts” on account of such a near tragedy. The good news is how wonderful she has gone on to be and all she has accomplished so far in her young life. I can’t imagine how hard it must have been, talk about bitter sweet.</p>

13

<p>Yes, it was hard to miss those special events, but honestly, that was more minor in the scheme of the entire situation. She also was lucky that she had just finished her college auditions. But it was about surviving the injuries, the surgery, the complications, and then making a full recovery, which they said would take six months and it all happened six months before she was to start college and so the main thing is she not only survived but recovered fully and in time to start college as planned. She was in two musicals that summer (the one I mentioned, plus a professional production of Bat Boy where we live). But when someone is this injured, what matters is surviving, living, and recovering without permanent damage (not only was she hooked up to machines in intensive care, but one of her injuries, a fractured hip, was of concern too for someone who is a dancer and MT performer). </p>

<p>Anyway, a week ago was the 6 year anniversary of this horrible experience and I sent my D a card and how she, nor I, will ever forget that she had a second chance in life and was meant to go on and do great things. </p>

<p>This all can help with perspective because being out of her shows and other stuff, or getting college admissions notifications in a hospital bed (thankfully, given the circumstance, she was getting positive news!), is not NEARLY as important as survival. I hope nobody goes through such an experience but it does give one perspective. I’m in NYC right now for the night and just saw my D’s original musical (she wrote/composed the libretto/music/lyrics) and also plays a lead in it, and to think where she was six years ago at this moment, coming out of surgery and with complications, oy. We are so grateful. </p>

<p>That said, with my other D, all her high school “lasts” were bittersweet. My younger D (the MT one), even referred to all of that with her sister in one of her college app essays!!</p>

14

<p>No theatre program at my D’s high school so no “lasts” to miss there. She performed in 6 different shows at 6 different theatres her senior year so it was kind of hard to get too attached to any one cast. I think that’s why I had so much fun going to her first college show, especially because I got to socialize with her friends in the cast and crew in a way that I never got while she was in high school. For those who had that in high school I can see why you would miss it - as both students and parents!</p>

15

<p>My daughter won’t be at all phased by not getting lead parts right off the bat in college. lol. Her high school teacher consistently passed her over every single year for pretty much everything but chorus roles for one favorite she had, and when she graduated, they all went to another favorite. She only got the lead this fall because she was LITERALLY the only, one and only, single, solitary girl who could both sing AND dance to audition, and the role simply wouldn’t permit any faking it. (Tracy Turnblad.) Not only that but except for needing some padding, she is physically and type wise perfect for the role. Short, brunette, determined and perky and though she’s come a long way towards “legit” she’s really a belter. She was so perfect for the role that even this unpredictable director couldn’t turn it down. (if I didn’t know better I’d think she cast it with her in mind but one shouldn’t speculate on those things, that way lies madness)</p>

<p>Guess it was a good thing that another perky little (on her way to being a) triple threat didn’t transfer into the school. lol. </p>

<p>Actually the director did the best job of casting that show that I’ve seen in the four years we’ve been there, not just my D but all the other roles were probably about as understandable as any we’ve seen. Of course the very next play went right back to “huh???” </p>

<p>Anyway - even though the girls who always got cast over her (none of whom went on to major in theater, hmpf) were pretty much the same level of talent as D, she has never had the idea that she had an especially better chance than anyone else of getting a role. She’s been kept pretty humble so I think if she gets any roles at all in college she’ll be pretty thrilled. She’s always been thrilled with any role anyway. Though, I have to admit she would have probably run out of cheerful good sportery if she’d been past over as Tracy for someone five foot 10 and elegantly slender who couldn’t “move” and had a very soft high soprano voice. As would have I, honestly, because, please. (I was just as annoyed at Director last year when she passed over another girl, not my D but an incredibly professional talented girl a year younger than her, who was PERFECT for a role physically and could have pulled it off easily and gave it to a different girl and sure enough she was not right and not even close to ready for a big lead role, the play was another embarrassment, and we were all, WHY??? I probably sound like one of those horrible mothers who think they know it all. I absolutely don’t and I know I don’t, but, every single theater person in town including people who DO know it all thought the same thing. We have just been watching in astonishment lo these past several years!)</p>

<p>I don’t know if I ever told the story of what a train wreck D’s senior play was, though, tech wise. If we all ever get together over a pitcher of Margaritas I have got a GOOD one for ya. </p>

<p>The neat part about it, though, was that my dad and brothers came to see and while they love my D, they all (I KNOW they were) had been wondering what we were doing “letting” her go into this field.</p>

<p>After they saw her, and saw how valiantly and the cast made it through numerous saves during the most astonishing on stage screw ups on part of the band (as in, just one example, completely NOT DOING ONE ENTIRE SONG, yes, she repeated the cue 4 or 5 times, and finally started the duet acapella and they pulled it off) and the tech crew (I still don’t understand HOW this all went so horribly wrong) -</p>

<p>Well you know how we are always talking about the 25 skills they learn in theater? She (and the rest of the cast, I was bursting with pride of them all) exhibited every last one of them that night and my dad and brothers were very impressed with, for one thing, her talent, and for another, her thinking on her feet like she did. And they are a hard sell.</p>

<p>So now they are more or less behind her and dad has even offered to help with college because I think now, just a little bit, they GET it.</p>

<p>So that’s our senior play story!(And the line “STUPID DOGS” will never be forgotten at our house! And no, that line isn’t in the script!!)</p>

16

<p>My last musical in high school was done in November. There’s a tradition at my school that before the last performance of the musical, our director gives copies of different plays to the seniors. Let’s just say I was a crying MESS. We all were. The show this year was Hairspray (a LOT of schools are doing that this year, I’ve noticed) and we had come together so closely as a cast. It just made us that much more emotional.</p>

<p>But this week is my last Shakespeare play, which will be the last play I do with my director (same one who does the musicals) and I know once we finish the curtain call Saturday night, it’ll be a wrap. I love my director to pieces–she’s like a second mom to me–and I’m gonna miss her so much.</p>

17

<p>soozievt- I have always read your wonderful posts on this forum and enjoyed hearing about your daughter’s experiences, but I had no idea what she went through her senior year until you wrote about it here. I had tears in my eyes when I read this, your daughter is an inspiration to overcoming setbacks. </p>

<p>Last night I attended the final show at my D’s high school and it was just great to see my D with the theatre kids who helped her survive high school.</p>

18

<p>My S did his last Shakespeare- the Winter’s Tale, he as Leontes- this fall and they will be doing " Sweeney Todd" at the end of April.
I will be at every single performance , as I always am, but I don’t think he or I will be emotional.</p>

<p>Now flash forward to this summer, where he will be at the summer program he has been at for many summers ( same one as soozievt’s D). have no idea what shows they will be doing, but he will be there for 2 continuous sessions and I will be sobbing at every single performance - especially at OTC!!
This theatre camp has been his second home, a place where he is loved and understood. His best friends in the world are there ( from literally all over the world), as are mine, and the thought of not going back there brings me to tears as I type this!</p>

19

<p>Laris, I realize many on the MT forum now are newish members and would not have known that story. However, I have been on CC for 8 years and so many CC friends knew about this as it happened while I was a participant here and during the time when college admissions decisions were coming out. I honestly do not wish this kind of experience on anyone ever. Then again, we feel very lucky as our daughter survived. </p>

<p>I truly feel as thatsmyboy’s mom feels in the post above. My daughter went to the same theater camp that her son now attends. She went for 8 summers (16 sessions). This was a second home to her and a huge significant piece of her youth. Her many friends made there are lifelong friends. In fact, I am at her apt. in NYC right now and one of her apt. roomies is a friend from that camp whom she has known for about 13 years. And while this D did not get to do many of her high school “lasts” (though did get to attend prom, which luckily was her first day walking independently!), her HUGE “lasts” were not just her final musical at her summer program, but her final performance of what is called Our Time Cabaret there, which was the highlight of her every summer and she had been in 15 casts of that show. The final moment of that did have me crying and i know she was too on stage. Kissing that summer program goodbye was more emotional for her than kissing her high school goodbye! (while it is over, she still is friends with and sees so many from that program here in NYC…I saw a couple last night myself)</p>

20

<p>soozie, I’m sure glad your daughter pulled through and recovered like she did. (that sounds so inadequate but I don’t know how one could find any words that weren’t) I’m sure you never see life the same way after something like that. You are she are truly inspirational.</p>