The IWU Theatre Guild prepares for the weekend premiere of the “Schoolhouse Rock!” musical on March 15.
The 90-minute musical will feature songs from the “Schoolhouse Rock!” TV show.
The musical will string songs from the show together to create a narrative based on the wonders
of education and teaching.
“It’s a lot of singing, it’s a lot of dancing, just kind of straight throughout. Not a ton of talking but you know, that’s kind of the main idea again, is making learning enjoyable and just constantly continuing to learn,” cast member Abigail Nutter said.
The cast size for the musical is smaller than usual, only having six roles.
Stage Manager Kayla Branham talked about some of the highs and lows of the last few weeks of production.
“The cast is amazing. They have an amazing work ethic. They’re good at what they do and thankfully the cast fits their roles very well,” Branham said.
The show comes after a recent change in the IWU theatre department, which saw the removal of the bachelor’s degree in theatre.
Despite this, the theatre guild will continue to put on performances. Students will also have the
opportunity to graduate with a minor in theatre.
The impact of the change was articulated by the musical’s technical director, Dr. Steven Wood.
“It’s been a challenge to put up a show after the school announced cutting the major because you can imagine that had some emotional sadness to our majors,” Wood said.
Wood also spoke about the role of IWU’s President Kulaga in supporting the Theatre Guild through the change.
“He’s been pretty vocal about being supportive of the performing arts. So he clearly sees a value in the arts being a front porch to the local population, to constituents, to prospective students and to donors,” Wood said.
Wood said he wanted to encourage any students interested in theatre to speak with him about employment opportunities.
The cast is performing the show four more times on March 16, 21, 22 and 23. The curtains open at 7:30 p.m. on each day except for the 23, beginning at 2 p.m.
