Today is the last day of our local high school musical. The Barnstable High School Drama Club is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, and over the last 3 months has been working on a large scale production of "The Wizard of Oz." When I say large scale, I mean it - over 300 cast members, rigging brought in by a "flying" company to fly various cast members around, and a live horse onstage. It's a Very Big Deal down here on the Cape.
The local buzz about the show began when it was announced that Warner Bros. would be taping the production for a new on-line content venture, Warner Bros. Studio 2.0. They plan to broadcast short webisodes of the entire undertaking, from casting to performance, for which they paid the school $25,000. Not everyone was thrilled with the involvement of Warner Brothers, but it seems to have worked out, and everyone is eagerly anticipating the eventual broadcasts.
When the auditions were announced, there was a flurry of activity. There are parts for all ages, including little kids, and all the kids we know wanted to be involved. There are over a hundred Poppies, including half-a-dozen kids in my daughter's class. It's been really fun watching the show come together, and now that performance dates have arrived, it's become the talk of the town down here. The huge auditorium holds 1400 people, and each of the 6 scheduled shows have sold out. The director even added a second show for today, and announced last week that they have extended the production rights into the summer to allow them to perform 6 more shows in July.
Here is a clip of the show I found on YouTube, taped by someone in the audience:
I believe this was taped opening night, which was the night my husband and son and I attended. The performance that night had its share of glitches, including a horse with stage fright that bucked backstage and damaged some scenery. What I was most struck by, however, was the excitement of the crowd - everybody was thrilled to be there. The sense of community I felt was amazing - within 5 rows of our seats, I spotted my son's teacher, my neighbors, a fellow Girl Scout and her mom, and our UPS delivery man.
The feeling of being a part of something really special has been hard to miss - everywhere I've gone over the last two weeks, "The Wizard of Oz" is what people are talking about. It is actually a little magical, the way people are so excited about it, and the sold out tickets have become a very hot commodity. I reserved 11 tickets for today's matinée performance just in case every member of my husband's family could come down from Boston to see my daughter in the show. We are only using 5 of the tickets, and the rest have been snapped up by various people who found out I had spares and were thrilled to get them.
It has been a lot of fun, but it has also been our first experience as a family of deliberate over scheduling. I knew way back when Pepper tried out for the play that we would have a conflict with another activity, but we decided to go for it. The other activity is now over and done with, and today is the last day of performances. As much fun as it has been, I would be lying if I didn't admit I'm happy that we are almost done. After today, there will be no more late nights and ride arranging, no more Poppy wrangling for whichever one of us is the mom-on-duty that night. But while I'm looking forward to getting back into a normal routine, I think I'm really going to miss visiting the wonderful world of Oz. It's been a remarkable experience, and one I know my daughter will remember all her life.
I did theater as a middle schooler and on up, and my high school theater teacher always talked about how theater is "ephemeral," it's gone in the moment that last curtain hits the stage, and those exact memories and moments can never happen again. it's what makes it all so magical. it's also what makes the ending of a show seem like something almost mournful for those who are participants, because it's the "death of a show." don't be surprised if you and Pepper feel a little low this next week...perhaps plan something else special to do soon to give you something to look forward to. thanks for your story, it made me smile and remember my own memories!
Posted by: Meigan | April 07, 2008 at 12:00 PM
Holy crow, that is some set! I haven't seen a high school performance in some time but that looks amazing!
Posted by: Fairly Odd Mother | April 07, 2008 at 08:51 PM
My 2-year old LOVES the Wizard of Oz. And asks me to sing with her every chance she gets. Here’s a video of her singing Over the Rainbow:
http://tinyurl.com/5qxsmf
Posted by: joetrip | April 09, 2008 at 08:39 PM