There’s excitement in the air at Wallington High Schol for Girls as their cast of 45 prepares for this years’ annual Spring showcase, ‘The Addams Family’ musical!
After last year’s successful performance of ‘Beauty and the Beast’, the right choice was made by Wally Girls’ Drama department, as they picked ‘The Addams Family’ as this year’s musical. The recent, record-breaking popularity of the 2022 Netflix Original ‘Wednesday’ made it the 3rd-most streamed show of all time, leading to dozens and dozens of auditions this year from students in all Year Groups 7-13. The lengthy, selective audition process began in September, with a mix of acting, singing, and dancing assessments, which were then narrowed down by the various performative arts teachers at Wallington. The successful candidates then took part in call-backs, where final cuts were made, and character roles were assigned.
With rehearsals taking place semiweekly, the cast’s schedule is packed to the brim practising their acting techniques for the play’s total of 22 scenes, alongside a number of musical and dance numbers, all set to be performed at the end of February 2024. But among the busy, somewhat stressful preparation, everyone is still full of positive energy. Evangeline, in Year 12, is ‘so excited to see the costumes’, while her friend Helena is simply ‘happy to be doing something social’. Year 13, Aryana, also prides herself on being so committed to the production despite being in the middle of university applications and writing her personal statement. The hard work and organisation of all of the cast-members is what makes for truly amazing productions every year.
Nevertheless, even though it’ll be the actors up on stage for performance nights, it’s also important give recognition to all of the work that goes on behind the scenes in theatre. Set designers, backstage runners, lighting technicians and so many more also play a huge part in making the final production run as smoothly and look as professional as possible. With voluntary backstage helpers meeting every Wednesday, helping paint back drops and organise costumes, ‘The Addams Family’ is on track to become one of Wallington’s best plays yet.
