Thank you for joining us as Whitney High School presents "GREASE! School Version!”
I would like to thank the cast of students who have dedicated their time and energy to something larger than themselves. They gain a few years of additional life experience packed into the 2 and half months of preparation and it's quite remarkable to see the growth both socially and professionally that they make even day by day. Much of it goes unrecognized except by those involved, and if we are doing things right, that is exactly as it should be. The process is designed to make students feel the weight of responsibility that this rather unforgiving world requires at times…while also actively having fun? Therein lies our standard of achievement, and I believe we have met it many times over during the course of this show. It is a credit to the students on stage who choose to undergo what can be a rather grueling rehearsal process on a completely voluntary basis.
Thank you to my parents, who as far as I can tell, allowed me to play and explore as a child, which I’m just beginning to realize, influences a great deal in the way I teach, direct, and manage the students.
Thanks again to the monthly dinners n’company with extended family. We are always progressing in our understanding of one another’s humor and loving conversation, and its truly become something I am more and more thankful for in my life.
Thank you to my wife, Mallory, not only for her brilliant choreography in this show, but especially for her understanding the nuances of my position and what the students and show require. For almost every show, it’s rather miraculous how we go from auditions to opening night and don’t have to cancel the show because of the onslaught of overwhelming obstacles we face each time, and yet, to have you to confide in and share that burden is a blessing. I look forward to the bizarre happenings because then I get to tell the story later in the day.
Thank you to my son, Everest. You’ve started watching rehearsals out of genuine interest now, and it’s certainly a lot more fun watching you watch it. It doesn’t matter to you if things are falling from the ceiling, the roof is leaking in 10 places, the internet is down, one of the actors just got hit by a door while another just has to leave 2 hours early for no reason, you’re still gonna touch my nose and laugh about it like that’s all that really matters.
Thanks to Luna and Forest. You ground me and force me to breathe and take in the air around me. Your lack of opinions are more helpful than you or anyone else can imagine. You are the luck charms that seem to hold everything together.
