A warm welcome to friends, family, and supporters of the arts. My name is Wainwright, and I have had the pleasure and honor of directing this fine group of young artists.
When selecting a full season of shows, it is vital to have a thesis for the year. This year, it was important to me that coming out of the times of the pandemic, we themed our theatrical season around "family healing" as our core .
The third family we deal with is met with the challenges of loss, violence, and grief. They however, never lose hope in reuniting with their home, love and family.
Here at Horizon, we take pride in collaborating with industry professionals working alongside our students. Anastasia is a culmination of those efforts. It is also the first "traditional" musical Horizon has produced. It was important to me that the graduating senior class have all different types of theatre under their belt before moving on from High School. Anastasia is clearly inspired by Golden Age musicals, and it is some of Ahrens and Flaherty's finest work. Speaking candidly, this is also the last big production our Seniors will be involved in, and it will be tremendously difficult to see them go. Horizon's class of 2023 will mark my first time as a public school educator sending a senior class off into the world. I hope they understand the impression they've left on the program. They are some of the most professional collaborators I've had the pleasure of sharing a space with.
What I am most proud of, is the collaborative spirit built here at Horizon. Students have found family and built the community that theatre programs require to succeed and grow.
I'd like to thank the Administration at Horizon, Maura Sitzmann, Meagan Spry, Malik Van Hoozer-Elliott, AJ Bierschwal, Mike Wahlberg, Rachel Sampson, the volunteers, the parents, the rest of the staff, the students, and anyone else involved in the support of our premiere production of Anastasia!
Nicholas Wainwright
Horizon Theatre Director
