PHS students have been practicing for the Variety Show every night for about four weeks. Photo by: Emma Daniels
By Taylor Drake
Every other year the students and staff at Plymouth High School put on the Variety Show. The Variety Show is like a school talent show that exhibits individual and group talents such as dancing, singing, and instrumental performances.
Students have the option to be apart of the Variety show like senior Korie Rice, freshman Autumn Wilson, and sophomore Devin Gritton, who will be performing in the show Friday May 1, 2015 and Saturday May 2, 2015. Rice said, “I will be performing a piano solo entitled “Prelude 1” by George Gershwin.” In a different aspect, Wilson will be performing with other students. “I will be playing the viola in [the] orchestra. [We are playing] the “Game of Thrones” theme, a marimba ensemble who’s playing “Take on Me”, and I participated in Winter Performance Ensemble (WPE) and we are performing our show too. I also might be performing our Solo and Ensemble piece, ‘Sabre Dance’.” Similar to Wilson, Gritton said, “I’m in the full chorus. We are dancing to a song that is from the roaring 30’s and [we will be] dancing & singing to “Respect” from the 70’s.”
In act 1, the orchestra performs a piece from the Renaissance. Photo by: Emma Daniels
To be in the variety show one has to audition with the conducting teachers. Wilson said, “The auditions take place after school and you basically perform for Mr. Ames, Mr. VanAntwerp, Ms. Faulstich, and Ms. Warren. It was very relaxing because we did not have to have our entire performance ready for the audition.” For the choir and band it is different, senior Kayla Ferrel said, “The choir [and band] doesn’t have to audition because they are already in choir but if you are in any other act you have to audition.” Theatre teacher Ms. Jane Faulstich said, “We asked students to consider auditioning with solos, duets, group performances, singing, instrumentation, and skits. We had a very cool variety of performances at our audition nights, so I know that the show this year will be wonderfully exciting!”
Student Eric Burch accidentally rips his pants on stage and is saved by Chase Holzwart with her spare shorts. Photo by: Emma Daniels
After the auditions, the rehearsals are a large part in the making of the show. Ms. Faulstich said, “The Variety Show has a lot of required “after school” practice hours. Students who want to be involved have to dedicate a several hours to practicing during early April, and then, everyone must also rehearse on stage every night for 3 hours during the two weeks prior to the show itself.” Adding to what Ms. Faulstich said, Wilson commented, “There are dress rehearsals and rehearsals for each of the acts where we will block out everything on stage and put everything together. If performers choose to work on their individual skits by themselves then they can.” Coming to rehearsals is important, the show is worked on and improved throughout each practice. “Rehearsals are somewhat mandatory, but if some conflict arises, [the directors] aren’t tyrants. If students communicate with us, things tend to progress more smoothly. There have been a few times when a student misses too many rehearsals, and then we are forced to cut that student from a particular scene,” said Ms. Faulstich.
So after all of the hard work put in by the students, teachers, and stage crew, the students and staff at PHS can come to see two hours of the talented acts.