The saying is “better late than never,” but “better late than on time” might be more fitting for East Hampton High School’s spring musical, “Into the Woods.” Thanks to the snow, the production’s three performances, originally scheduled for last weekend, are now set for Friday through Sunday at 7 p.m., having given the cast more time to get ready.
“I think it would’ve been very challenging to put on the level of production these students deserve if we didn’t delay it, because they wouldn’t have had the time with the technicians,” said Katie Schreck, East Hampton’s drama director. “Usually, the first day back [from February break] we get the cobwebs off, we get together, we run through, then we start adding lights and sound and orchestration. So we would’ve really only had one full tech rehearsal before opening night if we went up as planned — and typically we have four.”
Besides performing the play from start to finish in full costumes, tech week is a crucial time for the cast to get to know all of the elements that go into a full musical production. “It’s the first time the students are with the professional musicians. It’s also the first time we have our lighting and sound system in place, since we rent both for the show,” Ms. Schreck said. “So they haven’t had any of those elements before and some of our leads are freshmen, so they’ve never performed with a pit orchestra, so that dynamic alone changes everything a lot.”
One of those freshmen, Faith Mullaly, plays the Witch, originally portrayed on Broadway by Bernadette Peters. “I
think it was kind of a good thing because everybody, including myself, had a little bit of extra time to work on things. And I think it definitely improved the show as a whole,” Faith said. “Working with the live pit, I think, is most important for me so we can get all the tempos right for songs.”
Working on the musical timing is especially important when the show is one of Stephen Sondheim’s creations, which are notoriously fast-moving, complex, and full of wit and wordplay.
The pit orchestra was equally thankful for the time to work together, because this year, they’re mostly students.
“This year we get to be a lot more hands-on because we don’t have that many professionals involved, because we’re able to cover all of the parts of the music, which is good,” said Melanie Vizcaino, a senior. “I play the piccolo and the flute and we pretty much play for the majority of the play. It’s a super-fun experience.”
Even Rapunzel’s prince, a character known for his arrogance, was thankful for the extra time to rehearse and the opportunity to work with such a talented cast. “The show is just full of music and songs and all the people singing them are so talented and it’s amazing to see everyone getting a chance to sing,” said Zach Nagel, the senior who plays the prince but doesn’t share his character’s cocky attitude. “The show is amazing; it’s like every fairytale combined into one. I love it so much. I didn’t really know it before this year and I’ve been loving every second of doing it.”
“Into the Woods” will be performed in the East Hampton High School auditorium. General admission tickets cost $20. Senior citizens and students pay $10.