When I first directed Spectaculathon over ten years ago, I was a high school senior doing a fun show, with my friends coming together do something we loved. It is incredible to me that after all this time not only do students respond strongly to the whacky hijinks of Don Zolidis' comedy, but how much a show like this means to a community that hasn't been able to come together since the COVID-19 Pandemic.
When I was brought into be the new drama director, I knew that this was the show I had to do with this group. At the heart of this show is an oppertunity for the actors in it to explore their creativity, make jokes and be silly, and grow as a community togehter on the stage. After not having a place to do that, it only feels fitting that a show with the ability to seem "student made" in it's core was the right choice.
I am immensly proud of each of my students in this show. They have all worked incredibly hard to learn their parts, some of them for the first time being tasked to learn what it means to be on stage. I am thankful to the students who have stepped up to voulenter and be a part of tech crew, from building and painting sets to my backstage team running lights and sound. This show brought West Sylvan Drama back as a community, and I am hoping that from here, there's nowhere to go but forward.
I hope that you enjoy this show, I hope it makes you laugh, and I hope it makes you feel as hopeful as it makes me. Hopeful that the arts are here to stay, and even in the face of world changing events, artists know where to come home to roost. Thank you for your support of West Sylva Drama, and on with the show!
-Louis Kruse
