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After this week’s cold snap, there will be a sizzle in the air as Dripping Springs High School ignites the stage with their production of the musical “Footloose.”
The show, based on the iconic 1984 movie, opens Thursday, Jan. 23 and runs through Monday, Jan. 27. It features plenty of dancing and singing, but it also tackles some darker themes, such as grief and domestic violence. It fol- lows the story of Ren McCormack, who moves from Chicago to the small town of Bomont, where dancing has been banned.
“Ren is definitely a very complex character,” junior Dylan Daniels, who plays Ren, said. “His dad just died and he and his mom just moved to a new town. He feels like an outsider because everybody judges him without actually getting to know him. But throughout the story he learns to love and he learns to open people’s minds to the possibilities that can happen.”
More than 60 students are involved in the production. The director is Coy Branscum, who graduated from DSHS in 2011 and is in his second year as the theater director at the school. Branscum said he expects the show’s performances will sell out all 650 seats. Tickets are available at www. dstheatre.org for $25 for adults and $15 for students.
Senior Emily Molleur, who plays Ariel Moore, the preacher’s daughter, said the cast and crew have worked very hard to bring the piece to life, and she’s really excited to share it with the community.
“It’s such a complex show. It has so much more to offer than just dancing,” Molleur said. “I feel like people are always quick to judge, which we see with everyone's reaction to the new kid and his ideas. So I think when people see that and see how it affects him as a person throughout the show, it will give the audience the opportunity to self-reflect.”
In addition to the production, audience members will be treated to a carnival in the courtyard outside the theater before each show. Students and theater boosters will offer a petting zoo, carnival games, cotton candy, live music and a silent auction.
Another star of the show is the 1976 Chevy C10 Bonanza truck, which was purchased by the Dripping Springs Theatre Booster Club to be-come a moving prop for Footloose. Students in the Technical Theatre class, joined by Welding class students, got the vehicle ready for the stage. Sophomore Christian Patterson, who is part of the run crew, said he enjoyed the experience.
“I got to learn to weld and how to work on trucks and cars,” Patterson said. “It was great moving the truck on stage the first time.”
Branscum said the theatre department is lucky to have a community of professionals who will come in to guide the students. In this case, that was Becky Sagen, a carpenter, welder, and sculptor with 20 years of experience as a props artisan.
“It’s rare to see a full truck on a Broadway stage - on a high school stage, it’s pretty much unheard of,” Branscum said. “But that’s what we like to do at Dripping Springs High School, we push the boundaries and explore the impossible.”
Freshman Davis Keyser is also part of the run crew, which means he helps move things on and off the stage - everything from small items like a book to set pieces like the Moore’s house. He said it was pretty cool handling the truck, because he had never moved anything of that caliber.
“I’m excited to see my mom’s reaction to the show, because she's always loved Footloose and she actually pushed me to join crew,” Keyser said.
While the crew were working on the set, sound and lighting, the actors were also putting in lots of hard work to get ready for the show. Molleur started taking voice lessons last summer, and she also took dance. But bringing her character to the stage was more than that.
“I’d say the hardest part for me is definitely the character work,” Molleur said. “Trying to figure out what makes Ariel tick, and why does she does the things that she does. She’s the preacher’s daughter so she feels a lot of pressure to be perfect. She kind of goes on a little rebellious arc throughout the show but eventually finds herself by the end.”
Daniels also did vocal and dance lessons, and he added tumbling and weight lifting to help prepare his body for the physical challenge of the role.
“For the cast, I think the dance was definitely a hard thing to tackle, because it is such a dance heavy show,” Daniels said. “It has multiple intense dance sequences with crazy lifts and fights and all the crazy things that musical theater has to offer.”
Costumes are another key part of the play. Dresser Caitlin Heller helps with putting together the outfits and with quick changes backstage. She enjoys being a part of these big shows because she learns so much.
“I love everyone here,” Heller said. “And I'm just excited for friends and family to see everything that we have all worked so hard on.”
