By Grahm Reynolds
Recently, BHS was host to a struggling floral shop, a sadistic dentist, and a murderous plant with a penchant for human flesh. This year’s spring musical, Little Shop of Horrors, was anything but.
Starting on opening night – May 12th – through the final show on the 16th, the auditorium was filled with sights and sounds which audience members seemed to find mesmerizing for the roughly two hours the shows lasted. Despite the final product, this year’s musical had its share of obstacles, inevitable during this pandemic, but the cast, crew, and everyone involved with the show persevered, and the show flourished, much like a well fed Audrey II.
Many changes were made to the way the musical was run this year due to COVID-19 health protocols. Normally, the musical is done in three months. This year, there was only six weeks. This trend continues to other aspects of the show as well. In what would normally be a single cast of around 40 students, this year’s musical was broken up into two casts of 16, with each cast performing in three separate shows. While performing, students had to wear clear masks in order to maintain safety. These demonstrate the “ever changing health protocols,” said Musical Director Mike Martone Jr.
COVID-19 did not just change the way things were run, but also how the cast and crew accomplish their tasks.
“[It made it] more difficult with the music process, and also to connect with the cast,” said senior Ashley Duong, who played a Diva / Street Urchin during Wednesday’s, Friday’s, and Saturday’s matinee shows.
“The biggest change in how everything works was definitely the social distancing aspect and how we had to factor that into our changes,” said senior Denis Ramic, co-stage manager.
These changes also presented challenges.
“Time management {was a challenge} for sure, This musical season had conflicts with the sports seasons of many members, so it was very tiring at times,” said Duong. Time management was a common issue, as Ramic echoed similar sentiments.
“The biggest obstacle this year had to have been the shorter than usual amount of time we had to put up the show due to COVID,” said Ramic. “Nonetheless, this still didn’t stop us from giving the public an amazing show.”
Based on the audience’s reaction, the show really was amazing.
Despite the evidential problems that came from these changes, there was also a silver lining. It allowed more “honing in on individuals,” said Martone. With smaller casts, each person has more of a presence on stage, and is able to grow their artistic talent more from the increased attention.
The cast and crew pulled through, and produced an excellent result from their hard work. But what did they do best? Martone said “[the cast and crew demonstrated] resilience, [and the ability] to make something really beautiful despite obstacles,” said Martone.
“Staying resilient was definitely the strongest attribute. Through ups and downs with music, choreography, and problems due to COVID, the cast stayed positive through it all,” said Duong.
“What I really think we did best this year was the efficiency of the transitions. Every change we made was organized, smooth, and looked amazing from the audience’s perspective,” Ramic said. “A good set is key to having a good show, and this is where I think we did our best.”
After six weeks of hard work and six shows to prove that hard work, the musical is over, and members of the cast and crew all have different opinions on what the best part was. To Martone, it was “seniors getting the opportunity to shine.” In a senior year that is already abnormal due to the pandemic, it is great that they had once last chance to demonstrate their talent.
“The best part of this year hands down was seeing the auditorium seats being full with people again. That’s where the real magic comes from, and seeing people laughing, with joy in their faces, was just amazing,” said Ramic. During each show, as the applause echoed off the walls of the auditorium, it was clear that the amazing cast, crew, and bloodthirsty plant sparked well earned joy from the audience.
“To me, the best part of the musical was the little moments backstage, laughing with cast members during little breaks, and sharing smiles. The bond between us is unparalleled and I’m really going to miss it,” said Duong, once again demonstrating the great qualities of resilience and positivity that the cast possessed.
This year’s musical proved successful. From all the diligent work of the cast and crew and the great spirit they demonstrated, they turned what would have been thought near impossible to a great triumph. BHS’ production of Little Shop of Horrors shows the great lesson of staying positive, adaptive, and resilience. And of course, to pay careful attention to any strange unidentifiable plants you may stumble across.
