In May 2009, Holy Cross Theater Group put on a production of Footloose. That was the first Holy Cross show I ever saw. Almost immediately, I knew this was something I wanted to be a part of. Even though I wasn’t in Footloose, in many ways it always feels like my first Holy Cross show because of how much it changed my life. Footloose introduced me to this amazing group that became my family, and it brought an old friend back into my life. You see, our fantastic choreographer, Michael Fobian, was in that production of Footloose. We were reunited at that production of Footloose and have stayed friends ever since. So, I have to start with thanking Debbie Mura, because without that production of Footloose, none of us would be here today. And my life would be very different and very empty.
Now here we are, 15 years later, at the HCTG revival of Footloose. After much debate, we decided it was time to bring this show back to the stage. It is the 40th anniversary of the original movie, and this is still a story that can really touch the hearts of an audience. While it is easy to look at Footloose as a show about dancing, it is truly so much more than that. Footloose is a show about grief, forgiveness, family, and trust. It shows us how our own pain and grief, left unchecked, can consume our lives and the lives of those around us.
This is a show that gives kids a lot of agency that they don’t normally have. I think it is really good for the youth to see that their voice does matter and that adults are capable of hearing them when they speak from the heart. And I hope this reminds the adults that we need to be willing to listen with an open and forgiving heart. In a world that is big and scary, it may be our instinct to try to protect our children by holding on for dear life, but Footloose reminds us that we must let our children fly from the nest and learn to make good choices for themselves, even if it is scary. In the beginning of the show, Reverend Moore tells us that God doesn’t destroy all of the negative influences in our lives because He is testing us to see if we will choose His path. And yet, it takes him the length of this show to learn that he must follow that example with his congregation. Something that he says in the movie, that I truly wish was still a part of this script is, “If we don’t learn to trust our children, how will they ever become trustworthy?”
It is a really weird experience working on this show and realizing that I am not the teenagers anymore like when I first saw this but rather the adult townspeople. But it is really cool to get to be in the position I am in and always be reminded of how smart, kind, and talented these kids are. I am so thankful to this amazing group of kids who worked on this show. I don’t know if you can truly appreciate how hard it is to do a show this intense without a stage unless you are in it. I want to thank them for their very hard work and sticking with us through this disorganized and difficult time. They have made something truly beautiful. I want to thank the First United Methodist Church for your kind generosity and support. We truly could not have done this without you.
My dearest friend, Michael, none of this would be possible without you. You are the Footloose expert, and I am so glad you insisted on doing this show again. Thank you to Michael, Nicole, and Lisa for your help in making this idea in my head a reality. I would also like to thank Stephanie Guida for being an absolute rockstar throughout this entire production. Thank you for being the executive functioning that my brain truly lacks. Thank you to my family for just doing anything and everything I ask whenever I ask it solely because you love me. Not only would this show not have happened, but basically nothing in my life would happen without you.
And with that, I hope you all enjoy the show and take the lessons it has to offer to heart. Now it’s time to cut loose and enjoy the Holy Cross Theater Group’s 2024 production of “Footloose: The Musical!”
