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MPHS fall production of ‘Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat’ made possible through grant

Middle Park High School students rehearse for their upcoming production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.
Lance Maggart / lmaggart@skyhinews.com

Thespians at Middle Park High School are gearing up for their fall production this year with a little extra help from the Educational Theatre Association.

Over the course of three days in early November, students from Middle Park High School will put on performances of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s famous musical, “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.” This fall’s performance of the iconic stage production was made possible through a grant from The Musical Company, in cooperation with the Educational Theatre Association, which provided a free standard rental and royalty license for the high school.

“This is huge for the MPHS theater program,” Christal McDougall, theater director for Middle Park, said. “We have a very small budget, so this helps a lot. We’re still hoping to get donations to help us purchase scenery materials and costume elements.”

According to McDougall the total value of the grant is more than $2,500. Middle Park is one of only five schools throughout the nation to receive this honor. Middle Park received the grant after McDougall applied for the funds earlier this year.

“The grant covers the licensing for the show, which includes rental of all materials, the license fee itself, plus royalty fees,” McDougall said. “We feel pretty fortunate.”

McDougall is overseeing a troupe of 31 students for this fall’s production including 16 cast members and over a dozen crew members and student who help run the show.

“I am very excited to have several students join the theater program for the first time along with a handful of freshmen,” McDougall said. “I also have many returning sophomores and upperclassmen.”

One of the seniors participating in the production this year is Kiana Ledin, who serves as one of several narrators for the fall production.

“I think it’s amazing that we were able to pull this off since we got a grant to do this,” Ledin said. “We have so many amazingly talented people. It is a great way to go out. It is unlike most of the other shows we have had.”

Ledin and the other students still have nearly a month-and-a-half to prepare for the show. At the moment the students are focusing on learning the music and choreography for the show and are getting a little assistance on the choreography side of things from Kelsey Abberger, a professional actress from Rocky Mountain Repertory Theatre.

“The whole show is sung with no dialogue, sot he music will be something we work on throughout the process,” McDougall explained. “The next steps will be the lighting design, done by MPHS junior Henry Kacik, and sound design, done by MPHS junior Matthew DeCicco.”

Middle Park High School’s theater program will perform “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” in the high school auditorium Nov. 8, 9 and 10 with shows starting at 7:30 p.m.


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