NOW
PLAYING!
Click HERE to view the program and listen to the recording of Southwick Regional School's Performing Arts Presentation of IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE
A Note from SRS Drama Club Advisor Janet Grunwald
How do you stage a play without a stage? Rehearse in cyberspace? Raise the curtain in a pandemic? These were just some of the many questions our Production Team had to contend with. With the disappointment of last spring’s production of NEWSIES being cancelled on our minds, we were determined that the students of the SRS Drama Club would not miss another opportunity--the show would indeed go on this Fall.
Director Rachel Grzelak, Music Director Rich Quinn, and I began brainstorming during the summer, and with the possibility that social distancing might still be in effect for months, chose to create a show with the feel of a 1940s radio broadcast. We envisioned transforming the Southwick Regional Stage into a vintage recording studio, the cast standing 6 feet apart at their individual microphones. When it became clear, however, that we could neither bring the cast together to rehearse nor perform for an in-person audience, we turned as many have this year to 21st-century technology to make the magic happen.
After several months of Rachel juggling after-school schedules and wi-fi connections for Zoom rehearsals with the Cast, then pulling all-nighters with Rich for the sound editing, we are so very proud to bring this gift from the SRS Drama Club Family into the homes of the Southwick Community -and beyond!
And what better story to share than that of the classic tale in IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE-with its themes of resilience, family, and community–at a time when we are each seeking ways to support each other. As the 75th anniversary of this holiday classic, borne out of another era when hope and determination sustained so many, we can all take its message to heart.
So, make yourself a cup of hot cocoa, gather around the computer, and enjoy tuning in–thank you for sharing this with us!
Watch the promo video below!