School musicals require work and effort from many people. On the nights they are performed, audience members show up and enjoy the impressive performance. But have you ever wondered what happens behind the scenes? Well, here is a quick look into what it takes to make these musicals happen – an interview with Brit Flynn, the director.

The Hive: Do you write the scripts for these shows?

Flynn: Not this show. This show was written by Steven Sater, and the same people who did the music for Spring Awakening. This is a piece we found nice. It was off-Broadway, and it’s an unknown musical.

The Hive: What does a normal rehearsal look like?

Flynn: It depends on the day–  if we’re focusing on music or dance or blocking or character work. Typically, if I’m blocking through a scene, I like to read through it with my actors first and discuss it a little bit. Then have them sort of stage it, and adjust the staging that they naturally want to do. 

If we’re doing a music rehearsal, we will start with a warm-up, and then Ms. Koch will teach the music. If it’s a choreography rehearsal, if we’re lucky, we get to start with a physical warm-up and then Carissa Bellando, our choreographer, will teach them the dance. But this show is cast with a lot of people doing a lot of things, so there are only so many rehearsals we can do. 

The Hive: What is most important in making a show go well?

Flynn: I think communication is number one. You have to talk with your team so that you can trust that you can give them jobs. Everybody’s responsible for their own thing.  You have to learn how to communicate with your team. You have to learn how to communicate with your actors. You have to learn how to communicate with your stage managers and your crew, so that everybody knows what their job is. Because otherwise, jobs get taken on by many people, one person doing too many of them can convolute the message. 

The Hive: How long does it take from start to finish to make your musical come alive?

Flynn: Usually, I’ll pick the show in the early parts of the year. So in January and February, I’m looking for what we’re going to be doing in the fall of next year. Then usually I’ll pick my top couple of favorites, and I’ll share it with the designers and music director. 

I will ask if they want to do this project. And then they’ll say yes or no. And we’re always thinking about the students we have and who we’re trying to fit into the show. For example, this person’s voice would be very good for this role. 

We spend the summer planning everything. When we go into the show in the fall we cast it. Usually, it is entirely different from what we had in mind because kids come out and they try things, and we get to see things we didn’t even think of. It’s really cool. Then we normally start rehearsals the week after school starts. We go right into November, and we rehearse almost every day. 

Alice by Heart will be performed November 21 – 23 at 7 pm and Sunday, November 24 at 2 pm in the EHS Auditorium. Tickets are available now at ewsd.org/ehstheater.