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The Eagle Eye Theatre is set to morph into the 1960s 鈥� complete with bad hair, questionable clothing and great music.
The Howe Sound Secondary School musical theatre class is set to perform Hair, the psychedelic musical, from May 21 to 24 and May 28 to 31. Teacher Janice Carroll said it has been a busy four or five months putting the play together.
鈥淲e meet Mondays and Wednesdays from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m. and also have smaller rehearsals,鈥� she said, noting the group put on a production of Cinderella earlier this year. 鈥淲e鈥檝e also been meeting Sundays for the last couple of weeks and it鈥檒l really ramp up as we get closer to show date.鈥�
Carroll said the students have been absorbing the material and noted there are a lot of deep subjects within the play that are still relevant today.
鈥淲e spent a lot of time talking about the play because when you first read it, it鈥檚 different because it doesn鈥檛 have a traditional plot line,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e had to talk about what people were protesting, the Vietnam War and the idea of taking drugs to find a sense of enlightenment as opposed to just partying. There are also issues that cross gender and racial lines and organized religion in the play.鈥�
She admitted some scenes had to be cut but said that the play is recommended for ages 14 and up because of some material that may not be appropriate for younger audiences. For example, there is an extended trip scene that uses strobe lights to mimic the feeling of being high.
A total of 60 students make up the class and Carroll said it鈥檚 been a team effort in putting the play together.
鈥淲e have a great group of students and I love their commitment,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hey can relate to the material and are really interested in it. It鈥檚 been a fun process, but an unusual one for them because of the lack of plot.鈥�
The cast is made up entirely of musical theatre students, with David Thomson playing the lead role of Claude and Brandon Koop portraying Berger. Sheila is played by Ashley Schultheiss and Chloe Wiesenthal. The role of Woof has been given to Jamie Kawchuk.
Other local talent involved in the play includes: Jan-Louis Wiedmann (Hud), Erika Carney and Ali Weatherbee (Jeanie), Olivia Godfrey and Alysha Russell (Crissy), Grace Christensen and Ashleigh Giffen (Dionne), Dean Van Tassel (Margaret Mead) and Hubert (Thomas Drewry).
Carroll is the artistic director and is working alongside music director Fran Booth and choreographer Jennifer Carney on the production team.听
The play is scheduled to last about two hours and tickets are available at the HSSS school office or at Billie鈥檚 Bouquet in Downtown Squamish. Tickets are $10 for students and seniors and $12 for adults.
It all kicks off at 7 p.m. at the Eagle Eye Theatre from May 21 to 24 and May 28 to 31. For more information on the play, visit www.sd48howesound.org/programs/music/musical-theatre.
