Every year, aside from the COVID shutdown, Northwest High School performs a musical open to the community. These productions give the students involved something to commit to and an outlet for self-expression. Though it is physically taxing and a huge, time-consuming commitment, it absolutely pays off in every way.

   On Feb. 22, tickets for this year’s musical production of Mary Poppins, being performed at Jackson Community College, sold out in six hours. At 2:00 p.m., parents could buy tickets using an early access code. Over two hundred tickets had already been sold by 4:00 p.m., when the public had access. Ticket sales slowed down for a while until 10:00 p.m., when all four shows had been filled. 

   “I have had a show sell out in 30 hours, but never six,” said Snell. Over the course of 14 musicals, Northwest has gained a reputation for putting on spectacular shows.

   With 135 kids in the musical, several of them serving as leads and a limited number of rehearsals, the cast has to put a lot of extra time into preparing for the real show. Outside of the nightly rehearsals spanning from one to three hours, the cast also spends a lot of their free time rehearsing lines and choreography on their own.

   “I try to spend between 30 minutes and an hour every day just reviewing things, either during school or after, just depending on when I have extra time,” Junior Kristen Cumings, a lead playing Mary Poppins.

   With over 50 rehearsals spanning over two to three months, plus the amount of time spent running lines and learning dance moves, it is no wonder this show has so much buzz. 

Going on his six year, Alex Lazaroff has been the backstage manager for the musicals. Over the years, the sets have grown larger, more detailed, and more sophisticated, resulting in a more impressive production.

   “We were just pushing around poorly made sets that worked for what we had, and now we are building two-story buildings that you could live in if you really

wanted to,” said Lazaroff

   Hours of extra rehearsals, sketches, and hard work to make Snell’s brilliant visions for each show a reality have clearly paid off. The show sold out so quickly that some parents and other students were unable to get tickets. So much so that Snell authorised the Wednesday final dress rehearsal, March 18, to be opened up for people to buy tickets at the door of Jackson Community College.

   This year, there has been a lot of buzz around the musical, and every year, when it seems it can not get any better, the cast proves otherwise.