It’s that time of year again, when the Ballard theater program puts on their annual spring musical. This year’s choice: Between The Lines. A fun and niche musical that mixes the troubles and stresses in the life of a typical highschooler with the magical fairytale world. The female lead, Delilah McPhee, was played by senior Addie Angermeier. Delilah’s character creates representation for highschoolers who might be struggling with the same things she is. To cope with this stress, Delilah falls in love with a fairytale prince, played by junior Herman Wood, from the book she has been reading. The fairytale characters come to life on stage, as cast and crew work together to transform the stage from fantasy to reality during the show.
Addie has prepared diligently for the musical and getting in touch with Delilah, “I’ve taken voice lessons for 4 years, so I worked with my voice teacher a lot during the audition process and during the actual rehearsal process. I used quizlet a lot to memorize my lines and spent a lot of my free time working on the songs.” Addie put in a lot of effort for the musical that has been recognized by Mrs. Anderson, the Ballard theatre director, stated, “We counted the total minutes Addie spent off stage was only 8 minutes, every other minute was spent on that stage.” 8 minutes out of a 3 hour show can take a toll mentally and physically on Addie for three or four days straight. Addie stated. “After each show I was so exhausted physically and mentally, but also so amped up too! Being on stage and hearing the audience clap and laugh is such an adrenaline rush so that it balances out the nerves and exhaustion.” Addie expresses her love for the musical and also the Ballard crew, as a senior she is closing this final chapter in her high school musical career with a successful last chapter.
Students from all different corners of Ballard were involved in the production. Crew members consisted of volunteers and students who are currently taking stagecraft as an elective class. Nhi To, a junior at Ballard, originally wanted to try out for the musical, but ended up working backstage. “Turns out I didn’t get over my shyness and stuck with crew where it sounded like it was more hands on and fun activities which is why I wanted to be involved in the musical in the first place, for fun,” says Nhi. She describes the atmosphere backstage, and shares what she learned during her experience, saying “Also during shows, a lot of people were stressed at times and as a volunteer and someone who didn’t really do much during the show, I had to learn to read the room and not make something more stressful for someone who was already stressed. I also had to work under pressure during the show…sometimes I had to run to give people their props and make sure everything’s correct.”
To produce a musical, students have to combine their skills as an actor, vocalist, and dancer. This year in particular, with a musical like Between The Lines, students also have to create a shift from the real to a fairytale. Sadey Butler, a junior at Ballard and the dance captain of the musical, played many parts in the ensemble, like transitions from a modern high school student to a tap dancing flower. “My favorite part was the costumes,” says Sadey. “Our crew went above and beyond to make adorable costumes for the fairytale creatures. I got the opportunity to be a tap flower and the costume was so cool,” she says. This highlights the collaboration of each member of the production, with cast members showcases the creative costume designers’ works as cast members walk out confident on the stage. “My favorite part of the show was the backstage moments. Everyone tried to make each other laugh in the wings and the actors on stage. All the people were so supportive of each other,” says Herman Wood.
The audition process for cast members included a song and monologue to perform, and then a dance. “Because I watched the musical so many times, I was well equip to do this,” says Herman. “This is my second year doing theater, and my first big role,” he continues. “But by far, the hardest part was the music. I, as do many boys in theater, suffer from being a baritone. The role I played was a very high tenor and I had to work very hard to pump out those notes,” says Herman. Learning difficult artistic skills was not the only challenge for these students. Many had to balance the weight of putting on a good production with the other aspects of their busy schedule. “It was really hard to manage my schedule. I was also performing in Rent at my dance studio as well as 5 competitions dances that I was performing tech week. I also had to do all my homework and give my all at my job. It was a challenge but with the way the show turned out it was all worth it. I learned to effectively manage my priorities and be sure I don’t leave my academics behind when participating in extracurriculars. I think everyone should experience being in a play or musical because the people you meet and the skills you gain follow you into adulthood,” shares Sadey. “During shows, I had to stay in the FAC from 4:30-9:00/9:50 PM…I never really got home that late and stayed at school for that amount of time before the musical, so I had to learn how to use the time to do my homework beforehand,” says Nhi. Herman says “When the musical is in its final week and during the shows, I do not have enough time to do homework and get ample sleep. I have to do all of my work at school. And because of my difficult music, I had to vocal rest during the day to preserve my voice. Most socialising was gone. All worth it though!”
