ELLY GRIMM
• Leader & Times
The Liberal community will soon find itself under a new spell thanks to Eisenhower Middle School.
The Eisenhower Middle School music students will be presenting the junior version of the Stephen Sondheim musical ‘Into the Woods’ at Eisenhower Middle School Monday, May 6, with the doors opening at 6 p.m. and the show starting at 6:30 p.m. The show combines several Brothers Grimm fairy tales and explores the consequences of the characters’ wishes and quests The musical is tied together by a story involving a childless baker and his wife and their quest to begin a family, their interaction with a witch who has placed a curse on them, and their interaction with other storybook characters during their journey, which include the main characters from ‘Little Red Riding Hood,’ ‘Jack and the Beanstalk,’ ‘Rapunzel,’ and ‘Cinderella,’ among several others. Director Timothy Smith said he is very excited for the production.
“'Into the Woods’ is one of my absolute favorite musicals, and it’s been so much fun putting this show together with these students. Some of the songs are going to see some backup from my choir class, and I’m starting to see them get more excited for the show,” Smith said. “And with the main cast, they’re really starting to buckle down and smooth out some of the rough edges of the show. There are a few things that still need to be cleaned up, but they’re really getting there, and it’s great watching that growth.”
“It’ll be neat seeing everything officially in motion and seeing everything officially together. I also can’t wait to see everyone’s reactions to everything, especially the solos, they’re really awesome,” Jaylin Gonzalez, who portrays Jack in the show, added.
Smith also talked about the different factors that led to him choosing “Into the Woods” for the spring show.
“Some people might be slightly confused because Cinderella is a main character in the show, and we just did ‘Cinderella’ last year, but I assure you, they are NOT the same show. When I was thinking about what show to do, I actually sat down and talked with some of the students and had them look through some of the options I was thinking about. I originally only had two boys in class, and one transferred in, so I got a group of students together and asked them what they’d be interested in doing, and ‘Into the Woods’ was the one they got the most excited about,” Smith said. “And I know Sondheim might not necessarily be seen in a lot of middle school settings, since his music is notoriously difficult to sing/interpret, but these students have done a really great job putting the work in. It’s been great seeing the looks on their faces when they finally get something they were struggling with before, whether with the music or choreography, and everyone’s just grown so much as we’ve been putting the show together.”
Smith and some of his cast said the show has been very enjoyable to put together.
“With this being one of my favorite musicals, I love the music, and I love being able to help with character development with the students,” Smith said. “It doesn’t always click right away, but I can always tell when the students are working to put themselves in their characters’ shoes – and in ‘Into the Woods,’ there are some VERY tough choices that need to be made throughout the story.”
“I’ve really enjoyed the singing, the music is really cool,” Gonzalez said.
“I’ve really enjoyed the acting, I really like my character. I also really like the costumes, they’re really cool and really fun to wear,” Jackie Ramirez Terrazas, who portrays Rapunzel, added. “I really like it when Little Red Riding Hood finds the wolf and they have their song, I think it’s really funny. We also have a really cool mural that’s going to be our background, I think people will really like it, and the lighting is also really neat.”
“I’ve also really enjoyed the acting, it’s been really fun being my character,” Jacky Almarez-Trejo, who portrays Rapunzel’s prince, added.
Smith and the cast also offered encouragement for the community to turn out and see the show.
“These students have put in so much effort and work into this show, and I want to showcase that to the community,” Smith said. “I’ve also had a lot of help with the costumes and sets this time around from Tina Stucky, and that’s been great since she used to do some theatre herself. Just come and be prepared to enjoy it. There will be plenty of moments of laughter throughout the show, and there might even be a few moments that bring some waterworks. But overall, I hope the audience comes and just has a great time watching the show and supporting these students and all the hard work they’ve put in. There have been a few challenges since I have many athletes in the cast again, plus illnesses and breaks and the bad weather days we had, but we’ve all been able to pull together.”
“I would just like to see a lot of people out here to see us,” Almarez-Trejo added.
“I would agree with that, it’s been a really fun show to work on, and I want to see a lot of people,” Gonzalez said. “We’ve worked on this for a long time now, and the show’s free to get into, so come out.”
With opening night rather near, Smith said the show is coming together nicely, and he has high expectations for the production.
“I think the nerves are starting to build up to excitement, and since we only very recently put the poster up, I’ve had several other students throughout the school come and confirm what night the show is because they want to be there to support their friends,” Smith said. “I’m really happy to see that level of support for the show and these students, it’s very exciting, and I’m really happy to see there’s some forward momentum going with the program. With no theatre teacher, it was a little scary thinking about what type of momentum would be seen with the program, and there won’t be a musical theatre class offered next year. We’re still planning to do an after-school musical, so there is that little bit of momentum happening with theatre at the middle school level, and I’d love to see that continue. I’m really excited for us to present the show to the community, so please come out that evening and see all the hard work these students have put in to the show!”
