Put your dance shows away and get ready for a spelling bee.
This year’s spring musical by the drama department has been changed from “Footloose” to “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.”
Coming back from winter break left much anticipation for the musical “Footloose” as last semester’s production of “PUFFS” was such a hit.
It was to our surprise when it was announced on Instagram that the whole production would change.
There were a multitude of reasons as to why the change happened but the two main reasons being (you guessed it) covid-19 safety and casting issues.
With “Footloose” needing a cast of about 40, it wouldn’t have been safe when rehearsing and everyone jam-packed on stage. With the new musical, the cast is expected to greatly decrease by half to about 20 people.
Another reason was casting. Most VNHS dancers weren’t auditioning as this semester has felt so “up in the air” and uncertain. That being said, it wouldn’t have worked out realistically to do a musical heavily surrounded by dancing with little to no dancers.
“I was kind of disappointed at first but I’m just happy that we have the opportunity to do a musical of any kind,” senior Jude Struble said.
While the last minute changes may be unfortunate, “25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” is on a brighter path as auditions kicked off this past Wednesday, Jan. 19 and callbacks happened on Friday, Jan. 21. The castlist was officially released to the public on Instagram.
The future is bright for this musical comedy as it is expected to hit the stage in late March. Be on the lookout for updates on @vnhs_drama Instagram page.
