Musical Theatre Classes Adjust to Online Learning
By Hannah Kisser
We’re living in unprecedented chaos; nobody in our lifetime- or even the lifetime before ours- has had to deal with something quite as severe or life-altering as the Coronavirus outbreak. The global pandemic shattered any sense of reality for so many, devastated others, and changed all of our lives forever. Every student is having to adjust to this new “normal,” both inside of school and out, but many classes were just sitting around and listening to lectures even before many of us went virtual. Musical theatre is an interactive, immersive, get-up-and-do-something class. Ending the 2019 school year online only to begin the 2020 school year the same way was definitely a shock, and everyone has had to get used to the idea that we won’t be standing shoulder-to-shoulder singing “Seasons of Love” for at least another school year. (Not without masks, at least.)
Mr. Skiles’s seventh period Musical Theatre 3 class has especially been through a shock. Normally, the class performs an actual musical, according to senior Emma Johnson; instead, Mr. Skiles allowed the class to choose one of four projects to work on: a cabaret of past Timber Creek shows, a cabaret of miscast/dream roles, performances from lesser-known musicals, or writing an original musical. The original musical group- consisting of eleven people, at least one from each grade- has been given more time than the others to get their project done, as writing, producing, and advertising a show is a lot of work. While the other groups have to be done with everything by the end of the quarter (October 9), the original musical group only needs to have their script completed by that date.
When asked about the shift from brick-and-mortar to online school, the original musical group was almost unanimous in their feelings: not wild about it, but there are a few good things to be said. “I get to have a cool group,” said Tin Tran, a senior who has been making a lot of progress in the scriptwriting department along with fellow senior Jack Hickerson.“It’s different,” said Emma Johnson, “because normally right now, we’d be doing a musical. This year, we get to write one instead.”
Of course, there were downsides to having to take a virtual musical theatre class. David Estrada, along with many others in the group, was disappointed about “not getting to do stuff in person.”
Despite the inconvenience, there are a few things the group is excited about being able to do that they otherwise wouldn’t have been able to. Because the group is doing their own project rather than a full-fledged musical, the original musical group is excited about not having to be at school until 10pm for rehearsals. A lot of the group members also admitted to feeling more comfortable in terms of not wearing makeup or getting all dressed up for school; there’s a lot less pressure to look put-together when we’re all struggling to keep ourselves sane and academically successful at the same time.
Another new thing the original musical group is excited about this year is Feeling Friday, a weekly event they hold in their breakout room during seventh period. They still work on their project, but the tone is a bit more laid-back than the rest of the week as they all reflect on the past four days, talking about their feelings in a casual, nonjudgmental environment. There are only eleven people in the group, and they all know what is said in the breakout room stays in the breakout room, so they feel free to express themselves. That in and of itself creates a healthier, more comfortable atmosphere for the group, which is why many of them feel they get along so well.
Yes, the world is crazy right now. All sorts of problems, injustices, and annoyances exist (or have existed for centuries and are finally being acknowledged now). But there are little things that make these confusing times just a little brighter, a little better. The original musical group is definitely one- or should, I say, eleven- of those little things.
