Making Musicals in Trying Circumstances

The Show Must Go On

Putting On Musicals During a Pandemic

Photography by Peggy Keelan

Putting on a spectacular

musical is a feat in itself, but try

putting one on while also examining different mask models for sound quality and fog levels! Masks were only one of the many challenges faced by Middle and Upper School Theater Directors Jason Kruger and Rick Garcia as they put on their respective spring musicals with their talented casts.

Cast members of "Evita."

The Show Must Go On

From academics to athletics to fine arts, COVID-19 presented all kinds of conflicts to how life at St. Andrew’s typically operates. “It was an endless series of challenges, but I was so proud of what our kids managed to do,” said Kruger. The annual musicals in both Middle and Upper Schools are always an impressive spectacle, made all the more impressive this year considering the circumstances. In the month of April, the middle school cast put on Oliver and the Upper School performed Evita, both on the steps outside of the Dell Fine Arts Center. Not only were the performances done outdoors, but they were done in a completely different configuration than what any performers were used to. Actors are trained to play to an audience “full front,” or facing the audience. In these performances, the audience was in a semi-circle formation so performers had to perform diagonally on the steps in order to play to them.

“Necessity is the mother of invention, and the circumstances forced us to be creative,” Kruger said. When they couldn’t use the state-of-the-art facilities at the DFAC, which allow performers the opportunity to do all kinds of special effects, the directors got to work on figuring out how to create a spectacle outdoors. Kruger and Garcia worked with professional union stage carpenters to build out an elaborate set on the porch of the Dell Fine Arts Center, to be used in both Oliver and Evita. The team built up towers, bridges, and platforms on the porch to emulate the dynamic feel of a theater set. Special care had to be taken to light the massive outdoor stage and provide a wash of color to set specific moods in different moments of the show.

Naturally, masks were a part of the performance. With cast members’ mouths covered with a mask, the directors saw a problem -- it was jarring to an audience when a voice projected but an audience could not tell where it was coming from. Kruger and Garcia transitioned to clear masks, but then noticed the difference in the sound quality that resulted from the plastic masks. Clear masks also fogged up from so much heavy breathing from singing and dancing. After experimenting with several different kinds of clear masks, the directors finally landed on suitable ones for the lead roles that didn’t fog as much and allowed for clear sound quality.

The extent of what the cast and crew of these two musicals could accomplish during a pandemic is truly remarkable. Resilience, adaptability, and creativity were abundant among this group. Their perseverance to keep the arts alive and well during this unusual school year is something to be admired. Congratulations to every single talented person who helped make these shows a reality!