Postponed school musicals going live and online during July
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Stage Right School for the Performing Arts in Greensburg is preparing to stage “Aladdin Jr.,” the spring musical for its preteen home-schooled students that was postponed due to the covid-19 pandemic.
It’s the first time Stage Right has had to consult with a medical professional while preparing a musical production, to make sure that social distancing and health safety is maintained.
“That’s theater in the time of covid,” said founder and artistic director Tony Marino.
The musical will be staged July 15-16 in the Science Innovation Center auditorium on the Westmoreland County Community College Youngwood campus.
High school musical season was just getting underway when schools closed under pandemic-related mandates. Most musicals were canceled, though some have held out hope for summer runs.
The Jeannette Drama Club will present “Mamma Mia!” July 24-26 in the Jeannette Junior-Senior High School auditorium.
The Friday and Saturday shows will begin at 7:30 p.m. and the Sunday show will begin at 2:30 p.m. Seating will be limited, and attendees must wear masks.
Tickets are $10 for adults and $8 for students/senior citizens.
Tickets can be ordered by calling 724-610-0457. Organizers ask that tickets be picked up and paid for beforehand at the box office in the auditorium lobby, which will be open 6-8 p.m. July 20-23.
Monessen High School is taking an innovative approach to reviving its spring production of “Shrek the Musical,” originally scheduled for March 26-29.
The cast will perform for parents and other invited guests tonight on the high school auditorium stage and again Saturday evening to record a version that will be available for streaming on July 15 and 19.
Each cast member was allowed to invite two people to attend tonight’s performance, while the recording will be made without an audience, said director Hilary Brown.
Being ‘incredibly careful’
For both theater groups, rehearsals have been a little more complicated than normal.
“We’re not doing this willy nilly. We’re being incredibly careful,” Marino said. “You have to look at ways to do this safely, otherwise you’re not going to make it.
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“Dr. Carol Fox (Excela Health chief medical officer) is our adviser, and it’s been great to have that kind of guidance,” he added.
“We’ve been modeling a lot of Stage Right’s protocols,” Brown said.
Both groups of performers have been rehearsing in person and via Zoom.
The 28 “Aladdin” cast members are donning masks and undergoing temperature checks before coming into the Stage Right studio, which is being sanitized between classes.
“They’re standing 6 feet apart both outside and inside. We have X’s on the floors. There’s one entrance and one exit, and parents aren’t allowed inside,” Marino said.
“We’re following the rules and then some to make this happen,” he said.
Monessen students have had some socially distanced rehearsals in Monessen City Park.
Choreographer Megan McKenna has tweaked the dance numbers so that there is no more partner dancing, Brown said.
“When they go off stage, the masks go on,” she said.
‘The kids love it’
Marino said the WCCC auditorium has a large stage and a large backstage area, along with ample seating for audience members.
“It works well, because the kids love to do this and the audience loves to see it,” he said.
“We were two weeks out when the shutdown started, and we were so ready to go,” Brown said. “This is a really close-knit group. Out of 35 cast members, all but two were able to come back.”
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Stage Right’s performances of “Aladdin Jr.” are scheduled for 7:30 p.m. July 15-16. Tickets at $18, or $15 for students, are available at stagerightgreensburg.com.
“Legally Blonde,” the postponed spring musical for Stage Right’s home-schooled teen students, is tentatively scheduled for Sept. 25-27 at The Palace Theatre in Greensburg.
“We’re committed to doing the show somewhere, we just don’t know at this point if it will be at The Palace,” Marino said.
Monessen’s “Shrek” will stream at 6:30 and 8:30 p.m. July 15 and 19. Fee is $14 for an individual view and $18 for a family view. Details are available at showtix4u.com.