Thursday, January 9, 2014

Throwback Thursday: Footloose! Get Behind the Scenes

 By: Julia B.‘16 and Michelle A. '17
Photo courtesy of notredameacademy.org
And so three and a half months of blisters, sweat, and sore throats comes to a successful close. All of our hard work was poured out into three nights of music, dancing, and applause. Looking back, we have come to one final conclusion, it was worth every second of it! Of course we are talking about Notre Dame Academy’s production of Footloose! We know in our hearts it was a truly exciting and memorable experience for the both of us. This year, being our first show,  made the idea of being on-stage a frightful yet exhilarating one. It all started in August with the audition process. Mrs. Rella made the auditions fun- of course the butterflies still remained. Two days of callbacks followed until finally a cast list was sent out and the journey began…
Photo courtesy of notredameacademy.org
I, Michelle A., started out as your stereotypical freshman. I was shy, overwhelmed, and just ecstatic to be there. When I was cast as Rusty, it was literally a dream come true! I immediately hit it off with everyone in the cast and established friendships to last a lifetime. I love all the NDA girls and working with the guys was hilarious. All the upperclassmen showed me the ropes and made me feel like I belong. Once we started rehearsing after school about four days a week, H-1 literally became my second home. As things started to piece together, the music was sounding better, the dances were becoming sharper, and although it seemed impossible, I think I was finally remembering my lines. Tech week came in faster than I expected and we finally began working on the stage. The stage crew quickly joined the show family I grew to adore so much.
        Under the lights, all dressed up, and standing next to the people I call my best friends, dress-rehearsals were an amazing feeling. Even though the show may have been less than perfect at that point, I felt it in my bones: something great was happening.
Photo courtesy of notredameacademy.org
Before we knew it was Friday December 6, I never thought I would say this but the Math test I took that day was not what made me nervous. It was opening night! I stood behind the curtains, praying, laughing, even possibly crying a little bit.  It was show time. The stage was pitch-black, the full house of people began to quiet down, and that starting beat that had been so ingrained in my mind played. It
really was show time. We went out there and performed the perfect show we had been praying for the whole time! Backstage was even more fun with the goofy pictures we took and mess we made.  Bows were my favorite, you run onto the stage to greet the people applauding for the performance you worked so hard to give. On closing night I was so upset. This had been the most amazing experience of my life and it was finally coming to a close. When we all lined up for bows, I squeezed my partner’s hand extra tight as a sign of “We did it!” and most of all, “Thank you”. Footloose was the best experience of my whole life. I’m so glad I got to share it with all of you.    

Photo courtesy of notredameacademy.org
As for me, Julia B., I agree that being in Footloose truly was a great experience. Last year as a freshman, I was still getting used to NDA and did not have time for the play. Now that I am a sophomore and have gotten more comfortable with NDA, I figured why not try it! I would recommend anyone to join the play, no matter how busy you are, because I am so happy that I did! Even with all my school work and other out of school activities, it was never annoying or troubling to have to attend many practices a week.
Photo courtesy of notredameacademy.org
In other words, I never felt forced to go to play practices, I always wanted to. Through the play, not only are you able to become even closer with friends you already have at NDA, you are also able to meet new and amazingly talented people. As Michelle described, it was nothing but excitement from that first audition to that final show day, and we both would not trade that for anything! We both shared so many memories throughout the whole process and now cannot wait for next year!






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