Music swells in the background as a rag-tag group of teenagers in plaid shirts and old jeans dance onto the stage. As the best drops, they begin singing one of the most iconic songs in musical history. The Heritage Theater Department put on the musical Footloose two weeks ago from May 7 to the 9th. 

“I’ve been in all of our school musicals since I was a freshman, and I think Footloose is definitely one of my favorites that we’ve done,” Lauren Snow (12) said. “We had a very talented cast and the show really came together well.”

For weeks in advance, the cast and crew practiced for hours after school to prepare for the performance. Practices included singing, choreography, and learning lines.

“The practices were fun,” Tony Huston (9) said. “I enjoyed every single one of them. I made a lot of friends. It was very challenging for me to learn the singing because I am not in choir and am bad at singing. Eventually, I got the hang of it.”

The theater performed a total of five times: once on Friday night, twice on Saturday, and twice on Sunday. Opening night was especially emotional for the cast and crew. 

“The main thing going through my head was how I can make this the best performance Heritage has ever seen,” Matthew Anderson (12) said. “I was also constantly thinking about the fact that I was about to have my last opening night. I know for some other people their nerves are going crazy, but for me, I’ve gotten really used to the nerves through the many shows I’ve been a part of.”

The performances proved to be learning experiences for the younger cast that was new to theater, and taught them more about how to perform on stage and how theater works. 

“There was a lot of pressure,” Huston said. “I was scared to mess up and there was pressure from all the people staring at you. In the choir room a lot of the seniors gave inspiring talks so I wasn’t worried anymore. Footloose really helped me overcome my stage fright.”

Footloose was the last musical for this year’s graduating seniors, making the performances even more special for them. 

“I was mostly just thinking about how it was my last opening night here at Heritage,” Snow said. “I owe a lot to the theatre program here and while I’m excited to graduate and move on with life, it’s always sad to see something end.” 

Overall, Footloose was a memorable experience for everyone involved. 

“Footloose was an amazing experience and wonderful way to round out my senior year,” Anderson said. “I”m pretty sure Footloose will go down as my favorite musical because of everyone involved all working together as a theatre family and because of our fantastic performances. Musical is a fantastic experience and is really a lot of fun.”