SPRING MUSICAL

Spotlight on: Annie Jr.

by Brian Jinks

Valley School understands the value of the arts in early education. In addition to conveying intellectual benefits, arts programs foster positive self-esteem, heightened motivation, appreciation for diversity, healthy emotional expression and social harmony, and enhanced creativity. Therefore, Valley School provides year-round quality music and visual arts programming for students beginning in kindergarten and extending throughout the Upper School years.

Painting, drawing, ceramics, large and small choral and instrumental ensembles, hand bell choir, and percussion ensemble are just a few of the areas in which students engage with the arts at Valley School every day. Our elective program, created by former Upper School Head, Larry Clements, allows older students the freedom to choose their music, art, and technology course preferences. Invariably, the most popular elective course for 7th- through 9th-graders students each year is Musical Performance and Design. This elective provides students with opportunities to explore acting, singing, dancing, set and prop design, sound, lighting, and even costume design. Each year, approximately 90 percent of our 7th through 9th-graders choose to participate in the course, which culminates in March with the performance of Valley School’s Spring Musical.

Last year’s presentation of Annie Jr. marked Valley School’s 23rd annual spring musical. Music teacher, Debbie Broker, has been involved with Musical Performance and Design since the beginning. “It has been an honor to have been with the musical since its inception,” Broker recently reminisced. “One of the most thrilling moments was after our first show, You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown, when students were signing their white canvas sneakers. The thrill of the theater was palpable amongst our students, and we knew we’d done something right.”

Art teacher, Kelly Vallely, has been working with students in the musical for 20 years. “It is rewarding to see how far the kids come during the process,” said Vallely. “They learn a lot about themselves along the way. I always see them gain self-confidence, responsibility, trust in one other, and—after the process is complete—a sense of achievement and unity. It is truly exciting to experience such moments of growth with our students. So many amazing and talented people have been responsible for carrying on this tradition at Valley School.” Laura Varga, David Kirkland, Sandi Fryer, Jessi Yates, Mike Webb, Robin Wilkinson (Drummond), Brandon Snyder, and many others have worked with students in the musical elective over the years. “We can’t discuss Valley School musicals without mentioning our current costume designer, Debbie Mewherter,” added Broker, “who has contributed her many talents for over 20 years as well.”

Last year’s performance of Annie Jr. was Valley School’s first ever live-streamed production. Safety concerns regarding COVID-19 led to the decision to limit the number of attendees, but friends, extended family, and other members of the Valley School community were able to watch the show in its entirety from their homes. We were grateful to our licensing agency for quickly granting us an emergency live-stream license the morning of the performance. While we didn’t have a full house in the auditorium that night, the 2020 cast of Annie Jr. enjoyed the largest audience ever for a Valley School production! The students took the last-minute change in stride and delivered a beautiful performance on what turned out to be their last day in the building for the 2019-2020 school year. We were fortunate; thousands of schools across the country with later performance dates were forced to cancel their musical productions entirely.

It’s unclear what the future holds regarding restrictions on live theater productions, but uncertainty won’t stop us from providing a musical theater experience for our students. In the weeks leading up to our transition to the Valley School Distance Learning Program, our 7th-, 8th-, and 9th-graders familiarized themselves with this year’s production—a musical adaptation of Roald Dahl’s 1961 fantasy novel, James and the Giant Peach. Throughout the weeks of the VSDLP, they rehearsed their lines and choreography via Zoom, and brainstormed ways of realizing other elements of theater production. We are hopeful that our students will be able to perform on stage for a full audience this spring, but if that isn’t possible, we will find another way. This hallmark Valley School experience is just too important to miss. The show must go on!