The auditions for the annual district-wide musical had students —ranging from T-K to Seniors— busy these first weeks of November as they prepped their acting and singing and braced themselves for the cast list to be announced. Now that that list is finally out, it’s time to take a look, as well as understand what it took for the cast to get here.
Something that was introduced for Willy Wonka and continued in Cinderella is that when the students came into D9 to sing and cold-read, they did so surrounded by everyone else auditioning.
“I get scared of crowds and they make me nervous, especially singing,” says Freshman Sam Banda. And though having an audience during auditions made it harder for actors like Banda to perform at their highest level, this isn’t true for every single student.
When asked if the format for the auditions was actually able to make it easier for the “auditionees” , another Freshman, Kaylee Acevedo, said, “Honestly, for me, yes. It gets me ready to perform in front of an even bigger group of people.”
Auditions are definitely nerve-wracking, but they couldn’t come close to what awaited the students after that. Something known by experienced actors (and what the newcomers soon realized), is that the far most anticipated and daunting part of doing a show isn’t the auditions, and it isn’t even the actual performance; in fact for most students, it’s the publish of the cast list.
The official list for Cinderella was supposed to come out at 4:30 pm. Instead, it went out at 4:44, making for 14 minutes of absolute agony for every actor who waited to see their role, and ending for many with sore thumbs that came from constantly refreshing Google Classroom.
The casting for the most significant leads in the show— Cinderella, the Prince, and Fairy Godmother— ranged in grades from 6th to 12th, but in skill, all six students rivaled each other, and promised a very strong performance. The Godmothers’ were revealed as Evie Dawson(6) and Justine Valencia(12). The Princes as Rudy Quinonez(11) and Victor Snyder(8). Then, finally, both Cinderellas, as Emily Nazeck(9) and Abigail Lawrence(11).
There is never any doubt that every part of the show is essential and necessary— anyone from the stage manager, to an ensemble member with no lines, has a role essential to the performance— but it is just as known that getting a lead is a very special, rewarding, but also terrifying experience. An experience one must prepare themselves for immediately; as soon as they see their name on that list.
“Getting a role like the prince is a very exciting and stressful experience,” says Quinonez. “It is a little scary to have to be up in the spotlight like that but I know that with enough practice I can do it!”
It’s undoubtedly a daunting task, and not always what someone dreams of when they step into auditions. But nonetheless, it must be appreciated because there will always have been someone who dreamed of that.
It will always be important to acknowledge every part of the cast and the part they played in rehearsals. Each person who went into auditions and came out of the closing night performance had the same goal: to put on a good show for everyone to enjoy and love just as much as they did.
