It’s never an easy task to decide to put together a musical every other year at the high school level. But this year’s musical was even more of a challenge for Director Joe Rand and his production crew.
Singin’ in the Rain featured singing (of course) but also featured superb acting, amazing dance numbers and visuals that astounded the audience due to its complexity and timing.
The Becker High School production team had their hands full as the 49-member troupe had to learn complex vocal lines, be pitch-perfect on songs and stay in time with the cast when dancing and tapping on stage.
The visual fireworks “wowed” the audience when the stage became a cascade of falling rain while the stars tripped the light fantastic under the pitter-patter of water on their umbrellas.
Singin’ in the Rain — which ran Friday, Saturday and Sunday with four shows — is a story featuring popular 1920’s silent movie stars Don Lockwood (Justin Kimmerle) and Lina Lamont (Sarenity Klein) pairing up to do a new film — their first “talkie”.
Immediately evident to the movie crew in the musical is the chalkboard-screeching voice of Lina, who gets cringes from everybody every time she opens her mouth. The producer is well aware her oratory talents won’t translate over to sound, so he looks for someone to dub her voice.
Klein does a fantastic job summoning up an irritating character. Kathy Selden, played by Bridget Buchholz, is chosen for the job but conflict occurs when she and Lockwood get romantically involved.
Much of the show’s success rested on the fancy footwork of the three main stars, Kimmerle, Buchholz and William Schendel, who played Lockwood’s pal, Cosmo Brown. The choreography, the dancing and the acting were above par and the audience soaked it all in.
The music for the shows was just as poignant as Music Director Gretchen Bordson tickled the ivory keys and her orchestra team brough the era of the roaring 20’s to life in handsome fashion.
The highlight of the show, of course, was at the end of Act I, when Kimmerle performed the iconic title number. Water draining from PVC pipes high overhead showered the stage and created puddles perfect for stomping and splashing.
The production was bucket-loads of fun for the audience and the costuming and dance sequences dazzled. Rand’s production lived up to the hype and if ever a rainbow was deserved it was after last weekend’s production of Singin’ in the Rain.
The cast included: Kimmerle, Buchholz, Schendel, Klein, Laura Nidday, Emily Krogstad, Haley VanZee, Carly Pruszinske, Evan Schafer, Ethan Quill, Nathaniel Hed, Tyler Wasserbauer, Corey Christiansen, Brendan Potter, Mikayla Hiltner, Sam Pounds, Kelli Lumley, Allyna Storms, Grace-Anne Klapak, Sierra Vilmo, Grace Jacobson, Jarrod Favilla, Gabrielle Proefrock, Emma Tweten, Andrew Berglund and Rhiley Larson.
Ensemble included: Carter Aanenson, Hannah Bengtson, Cole Cook, Sierra Dvorak, Belinda Edling, Victoria Gibson, Allie Gorman, Abbie Halvorson, Samuel Hintermeister, Ian Kimmerle, Emma Kolbinger, Karly Kowalsky, Lauren Marklowitz, Elizabeth Moeller, Halle Murphy, Ella Nettestad, Bella Pettit, Greg Rice, Maci Salvevold, Erika Soyring, Amber Vogl, Kaitlyn Woerle and Faith Zinken.
The orchestra consisted of: Bordson, Mike Roe (trumpet), Matt Clemen (trombone), Shelley Clemen (clarinet), Kelsi Halvorson (clarinet), Kami Ziebarth (flute), Maria Hed (cello), Gretchen Roe (keyboard), Craig Vogl (drums) and Katie Novitsky (percussion).
The crew consisted of: Jasmine Anderson, Diana Bellefeuille, Kailin Buschmann, Lacey Butler, Erin Fagin, Melanie Giles, Evan Girtz, Kalley Goebel, Nicole Knudsen, Samantha Larson, Kole Overby, Isabelle Proefrock, Christian Riffe, Holly Rowland, Shalyn Quernemoen, Angelina Scheele, Olivia Schueller, Jake Schuster, Grace Soderquist, Abby Steffens, Morgan Steffens, Sami Stellmach, Grace Tillman, Morgan Tillman, Claire Voigt, Heidi Voigt, Hunter Voulgarakis, Alexander Wangerin and Perrin Weller.
Production and creative crew included: Joe Rand (director and choreographer), Gretchen Bordson (music director), Rich Kimmerle (tech director/designer), Celest Trosvig (costume designer), Greg Lynch (lighting and sound designer), Carolyn Lyon (student director) and Kyle Buchholz (videographer).
