Air Academy High School’s musical theater program just had an outstanding performance of the play Grease! Many of the students involved in Grease were helping with all aspects of the play. In some cases, it was not only the performers onstage but also the costume designers, tech help, and even choreographers who helped make this play possible. Grease was powerfully conveyed on stage by seniors Liv Carr and Drew Colbert. Both actors starred as the iconic characters of Sandy and Danny, who are the main characters in the original Grease production.
“The production of the play couldn’t have been any better. Especially our spring plays are by far the greatest productions because of the cast members' and tech crews’ connections from already working with each other since the fall,” senior Liv Carr stated enthusiastically.
AAHS spring musicals seem to be the greatest productions that take place. Many of the cast members love performing in spring musicals because of the dramatics that are a part of the play.
“I’ve been a part of the theater group since freshman year. It’s always so interesting to immerse yourself in the plot of a play and the personality of a character you are playing,” junior Sarah Newbrough said.
However, all areas of the play cannot just be the actors and actresses on stage. A lot of the time, it is the crew behind the stage that helps with the making of the play from the start. Many of the behind the scene aspects are just as vital or even more vital than the opening night of the play from some individuals perspectives.
“I loved costume designing for Grease, it was such an amazing experience even though the work was a little tough sometimes. It was cool to see all my hard work and others blood and sweat on the stage,” junior Shelby Roman stated with humor.
The costumes were a huge contribution to bringing the play to life. All the actors and actresses not only had to embody the characters, but also understand why they wore what they did for the performance to come to life.
“The costumes were a huge part of the play. For example, when Sandy had to change her outfit from being a clean, nice, school girl. She had to embody the cool, rebellious, greaser type of girl, and the costume wouldn’t have fit the part if she wore a pink ladies jacket,” Roman continued.
Not only the costume designers were behind the scenes, but also the Grease tech group had to handle the technical lighting, sound quality, and stage props. Some people also contributed by running on and off the stage to change props for various scenes.
“I wasn’t a runner for the props, but I did help with a lot of the tech lighting and sound. It was kind of a new job for me. However, I did catch on pretty quickly to how things worked backstage,” sophomore Dominic Jennings stated.
No matter the contribution to the production of the play, whether it be on stage acting, costume design, or even running on and off stage for props, there was a vast amount of dedication and hard work that played a part in creating an outstanding 2023 AAHS spring musical!
~Maddie Chidester