Getting Students Back on Stage

Ensuring our conservatory students had a variety of unique performance opportunities remained a top priority during the COVID-19 pandemic. From radio plays and filmed ballets to plays adapted for Zoom, students were still able to feel the excitement and adrenaline that come with performing for an audience, albeit in a different way.

As Meghan Montaner, president of the conservatory and education division, explained, “It was important that we maintain as many student performances as possible. While the conservatory primarily focuses on process over product, we know that performances are an integral part of the student experience.”

Conservatory staff and faculty worked hard to determine new and exciting ways to showcase student work in a safe, socially distanced way. In the summer of 2020, we restructured our annual Musical Theatre Youth Summer Programs to successfully complete our Pre-Teen Program and two sessions of our Teen Program.

The Teen Program presented Monty Python’s SPAMALOT – A Socially Distanced Concert-ish version, created specifically in light of the pandemic. Students rehearsed on Zoom for three hours each morning and visited various locations around central Massachusetts to perform socially distanced scenes each afternoon. The final production was presented drive-in movie style in the parking lot behind the theatre for students and their immediate family members. Pre-Teen students presented Monty

In fall 2020, conservatory classes returned to the studios with both in-person and online offerings available. With the return of classes came the return of our resident performance companies: the Youth Ballet Company of Worcester (YBW) and the Youth Acting Company (YAC). Each company typically performs in at least three productions a year. While most of their traditional performance opportunities were off the table, new performance mediums provided a fun challenge for students and pushed them to grow as performers in new ways.

Our YBW members enjoyed a variety of performances including filmed, socially distanced productions of The Nutcracker and The Stories of Peter and the Wolf & Hansel and Gretel. Students had to adapt to this unique performance style by getting used to performing in front of very few people or in some cases, just a camera. “It’s a lot different because there’s not as much [audience] feedback,” says Morgan Soule, Apprentice YBW member, “and the satisfaction of performing for a big audience is a lot different than performing in front of a small audience or for film.” Many YBW members had the chance to perform for a larger audience in March during the Youth America Grand Prix competition, which was held at the theatre and represented the first public event on the mainstage in over a year. The competition drew dancers from as far away as Florida, and proved to be a safe, successful event that provided everyone involved with a glimmer of hope for future live events and performances.

The Youth Acting Company presented three unique performances beginning with Agatha Christie’s murder mystery radio play, “Murder in the Studio” on Halloween weekend. Students studied the art of voice acting and even had the opportunity to record promotional clips for the show to air on Worcester talk radio station WCRN 830AM. In February, the YAC presented a Zoom performance of an abbreviated, 90-minute version of William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar adapted and directed by Olivia Scanlon.

For YAC member Tyler Keogh, just being at the conservatory has helped him navigate a challenging year. “This year has been very different from past years, but I’m so glad I could come to the conservatory every week and just be able to make art with people who love to do it as much as I do” says Keogh. “I appreciate that everyone at THTC works so hard to keep the arts alive when not many other studios or schools are. I think it’s always great to have different experiences as well, and I’m very thankful for this company and all the opportunities it’s given me to adapt and become a better actor in any circumstances.”

Each spring, conservatory students typically participate in multiple end of year performances, all of which were virtual last year. This year, students presented a Student Choreography and Variations Showcase on May 8 that featured original, student-created pieces and classical ballet variations. About 100 people attended, and the event proved to be a great trial run for the conservatory’s full end-of-year performance, the Spring Reflection, on May 23.

Looking ahead, YAC members will present the musical Urinetown June 25-27 at the BrickBox Theater. For most students, this will be their first live musical performance in over a year. “The Youth Acting Company has been a real life-saver this year,” says YAC member Heather Bachand. “After everyone’s school shows were canceled last year, I’ve felt incredibly grateful for all the opportunities THTC has given me. Doing theatre is what keeps me sane, so doing three productions in one school year was magical. The most special project will definitely be Urinetown. After a year of not doing musical theatre, I started to question my career path...starting this show has revived that fire in me. It is so comforting to know that at the end of each day I can come to rehearsal and make art with my best friends.”

This summer, the conservatory’s Youth Summer Program will present the first musical back on the theatre’s mainstage with performances of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Oklahoma! prior to the return of touring shows to the theatre’s schedule in the fall. “After a tumultuous year, it has been a breath of fresh air to see our stage alive once again and to watch our students shine,” says Montaner. “We are grateful for the students, families and faculty who have stayed with us and embraced every change along the way from online classes, hybrid classes, filmed, virtual and socially distanced performances, and everything in between. The future of the performing arts is bright.”