Dusting off the Spotlight: Frequent Fridays are back

The Theater program’s first Frequent Friday show of the school year will be held on Feb. 26.

Directed by Theater Executive senior Elinor Zugazagoitia,”Dinner at the Millers” will be the first of the senior student-run plays, which were previously unable to run due to COVID-19.

When theatre teacher Tom Defeo received the news that SMSD would be returning to hybrid learning on Jan. 26, he wanted to make sure the kids could get the chance to perform live while also staying safe.

“We are only in class once a week,” Defeo said. “So I want to make sure that along with class time, they can get as much acting or tech crew experience as they want.”

Each extracurricular has a specific set of guidelines to accommodate their COVID-19 situation, and theatre was one of the toughest, according to Defeo. They were told by the district that they couldn’t use the Little Theatre for spacial reasons, and many students were weary to perform due to safety concerns. 

“When we first came back in October, the students were a bit reluctant to perform because of the risk that could come from COVID-19,” Defeo said. “However, when we found out we were returning, [the program] put in a lot of effort so they could perform again.”

According to East’s website, prior to COVID, the original plan for the Frequent Friday sector of the Theater Program was to have eight shows in total throughout the year. The shows were supposed to be Theater-Executive-directed. However, when COVID-19 hit the doors of East, it was curtains — indefinitely — for the theater program. 

According to Zugazagoitia, she was given the opportunity to direct her the first show of the year after winter break, and took the chance immediately. She has been writing “Dinner at the Millers” since her sophomore year.

“I have been looking forward to my senior year in the theater program so I could use my script, Zugazigoitia said. “So I’m glad we won’t have to miss out on these.”

The program is now administering their own COVID-safety guidelines to coincide with the district’s theatre guidelines. Rehearsals for Zugazagoitia show include masks worn at all times, along with limited viewing of the shows. The live shows will allow family of cast and crew, and the rest will be filmed live. According to Zugazagoitia, everyone who is rehearsing for her show has a great sense of excitement, along with performance jitters.

“Everyone working in the show, both crew and actors, are extremely happy to be back,” Zugazagoitia said. “There is nothing quite like rehearsing while being able to see everyone’s physical face.”

While Zugazagoitia’s show is underway, auditions for senior Barbara DeZutter’s show “Desperate Situations” will also be held, bringing back some normalcy to the Frequent Friday process. According to DeZutter, while it may seem like a squeeze, it’s pretty normal to have overlapping rehearsals and brings back a sense of busyness that was missed.

“While it may seem like a lot going on, its nice to be able to direct and be in charge,” DeZutter said.

According to DeZutter, the auditions consisted of a cold read, along with reading from a music stand with their lines taped onto it, costumes must be brought in from outside sources, either store-bought or homemade. 

For freshman Livy Niermann, hearing about DeZutter’s auditions made her nervous, for both COVID-19 and the usual anxiety that comes with auditioning. However, since the program was back on track and functioning with COVID-19 safety guidelines, she decided to take the chance and show her acting .

“My high school experience so far has been very unusual,” says Niermann. “However, when my friend told me about the audition, I thought I might as well go for it.”

With Frequent Friday’s and other theatre program shows being back on their somewhat normal tracks, Defeo is happy things are looking up for the theater program.

“In the future, with the rumors of everyone returning, I’m very [hopeful] to see all the kids at once,” Defeo said. “But for now we are all excited to be in each others presence and do what we love together again.”