By Kat Gau '25
The lights slowly dim, and the rumble of voices quickly die down. You grip the armrests on your chair with anticipation. The music begins to play, and the curtain begins to rise. This is what I consider the public view of theater. By most, it is seen as a one-time event, over as quickly as it started. You never see the hours of work that went into every small detail. Like how the sets look so real and lifelike, the costumes are tailored and pressed, the makeup and hair are perfectly done, and the lights and sound are flawless. Most don’t realize the pure dedication it takes to create a performance.
In my many years of participating in theater, I have never seen such dedication as I do at Viz. This spring, the Middle School is performing Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs of the Black Forest. It has been an absolute joy to be a part of such an amazing Performing Arts department. I love to see the little victories that we have every rehearsal, and how slowly but surely everything comes together. Mr. Strohmeyer, our amazing Performing Arts director, has put hours into this play. He has made it seem to come straight out of a story book, even though we have only had three weeks to pull it off. He coaches and guides us to make us the best actors and actresses we can be. Mr. Hartley, our Technical Director, helps add all the lights and sound, but you would be shocked at how much is done directly by the middle school students. Most people, when they think of theater, they think of performing in front of an audience. You definitely need actors, but I would consider the people behind the scenes to be doing the harder work. They make costumes, organize and create props, control light and sound, and generally make everything seem like magic.
The most satisfying thing is when the lights do dim, and the music does start to play, and the curtain rises, unleashing a whole world of magic unto our audience.
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