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Almost a hundred students from Amador Valley and Foothill high schools are collaborating on a joint musical production that is set to focus on themes such as empathy toward others, selflessness and the right to love whoever.
Titled “The Prom”, this year’s joint spring musical production will be debuting next Friday (March 20) in the Amador Theater. Longtime Foothill English and drama teacher Dax Treible, one of the many producers of the large-scale production, told the Pleasanton Weekly he is excited for audiences to see what the students have been working on since December.
“We invite everyone to come on out,” Treible said, with the caveat that there is some mild language used during the show that people should be aware of, but nothing too serious.
According to Treible, the story follows a group of four eccentric Broadway actors who come to the existential realization that they are narcissists after their public image had been damaged by their poor behavior.
So, in an attempt to fix their image, the four stars decide to take on a social issue. That’s when they hear about a girl in a small-town in Indiana who is not allowed to take another girl to their high school prom as her date.
“The town’s parents want to keep the high school dance on the straight and narrow — but when one student just wants to bring her girlfriend to prom, the entire town has a date with destiny,” according to the online description of the production. “On a mission to make a difference, the Broadway stars team up with the courageous student, leading to a transformation that brings everyone together in the name of love and acceptance.
Throughout the plot, the Broadway actors begin to mature away from their selfish motivations as they support the girl’s fight for LGBTQ+ inclusivity at the prom and discover kindness and selflessness during that process.
“And then they teach this town and everyone comes together learning collectively from each other about being better people until they hold this inclusive prom for everybody,” Treible said.
The inclusivity lesson in the story is vital to Treible because, especially with what has been going on around the world and in the U.S., he said it’s important to highlight art that emphasizes empathy and that combats hatred.
“It’s really important that we present art and people get to experience something that shows the empathetic side and the fight against these acts of hate and these very isolated and insular acts of bigotry because it seems like they’ve become the norm … and so (through) something like this, we’re really hoping to remind everyone that’s not the norm,” he said.
According to Treible, the cast is made up of 40 cast members — half from Foothill and the other half from Amador — as well as 20 orchestra members and another 20 students running technology.
He said auditions began in December, rehearsals have been going smooth and steady since them, and that he can’t wait for the public to see how much work he, his fellow eight directors — some of who have to deal with making three costumes for each of the 40 cast members — have been putting into this production.
“We’ve got some really talented kids,” Treible said. “They’ve been putting in a lot of effort … It’s been a very fun, collaborative process.”
The musical will premiere March 20 at 7 p.m., with a second showing the following day at the same time. A Sunday matinee is scheduled for March 22. Additional performances are set for the subsequent weekend, also at the same times. For tickets and more information, visit each school’s homepage online.
