Dear Parents and Guardians,
Over the next few months, your child will have the opportunity to participate in several aspects of creating a musical at Franklin Middle School. We will have auditions, sing, dance, rehearse, build and paint sets, pull costumes, create light and sound designs, and most importantly, work together as an ensemble to put on a fantastic show.
The Audition or Crew form will need to be signed and returned with your student in the next couple weeks in order to participate. For students interested in being on stage, there will be a choreography workshop after school on Monday, September 23rd to learn the audition dance. Auditions will be held Monday, September 23rd and Wednesday, September 25th during the after school program. Some students may be asked to stay after again next week for callbacks, which gives us an opportunity to see and hear additional material. If your student is interested in working on the backstage crew, the crew application is due Thursday October 3rd. More information and a schedule will be given once our crew is chosen.
If your student is cast in this production or chosen to be on the technical crew, please keep in mind that there will be a commitment of after school rehearsals throughout the months of October, November, December, and January, culminating with the performances on Wednesday January 23, Thursday, January 24, Friday, January 25 and Saturday, January 26.
Rehearsals will be held Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays during the after school program. Buses will be available at 4:40pm when the after school program ends. During the final two weeks of rehearsal, we will add rehearsals on Tuesday and Friday and rehearsals will end at 5:30pm, so parent pick-up is required. We encourage carpools! Once your student is cast, a rehearsal calendar will be given out which will include the specific days your child will need to stay after.
Being a part of an after school production is a big commitment, and it is important that students work hard to balance their rehearsal schedule, homework, and other responsibilities. Students need to stay in good academic standing and arrange to do any make-up work or remediation with teachers during Learning Seminar or on days when they are not required for rehearsal. During the month of January, students will not be able to stay after school with other teachers, as we will need everyone at every rehearsal for those crucial final weeks! Please make sure you and your student have discussed their academic responsibilities, as well as their commitment to the production.
Lastly, if your student is cast in the show or is participating in the crew, we ask that one adult from each family volunteer to help us make this production a success. I will be happy to answer any questions you may have. Parents can either assist one day after school during rehearsals, assist at home by working on costumes and props, donate baked goods or cast dinners, helping us sell tickets at the box office or during lunches, or by helping the evening of the actual production. More information will be sent home about parent volunteers after our cast and crew is chosen.
I look forward to working together to create a great production of Annie, Jr!
Jaclyn Young
Theatre Director
Franklin Middle School
jmyoung@fcps.edu