Dos Pueblos High School Theatre Company had an “electrifying” opening weekend of their Spring Musical “Curtains” on May 7, 8, and 9, according to DPHS Theatre Director Emily Libera.
“I think it went so well,” Libera said. “The audience was laughing and enjoying themselves, and we got an incredible standing ovation for opening night, and the students were incredibly proud of their work.”
The directing team agreed that the performers were feeling both nervous and happy in anticipation of their first performance.
“I was very excited,” lead actress Nicola Bailey (12) said. “We’ve been working on this for so long, and so it finally felt like all of our efforts were paying off.”
“Curtains” features a show within a show by a company struggling to succeed on Broadway, all while dealing with the murder of their leading lady Jessica Cranshaw, played by Nicollette Pfiefer (10).
According to Bailey, the inclusion of the behind-the-scenes aspects are what make the show unique.
“This is really a love letter to theatre itself,” Bailey said. “So I feel like in order to truly document the show, you have to say thank you to all the people who put this on.”
Rehearsals for “Curtains” started in January, leaving the cast around four months to perfect their performance for opening night.
“There comes a time in the rehearsal process where it’s like, ‘Yes, I can improve, and there are still things I need to do,’ but I think a lot of those things happen on opening night when you get an audience for the first time,” Bailey said.
The cast will have an additional rehearsal on Wednesday, May 13, to prepare for the final performances, and to adjust any technical difficulties before going into their closing weekend. Libera will also give the actors notes so that they can focus on performing to the best of their abilities.
“The show just gets better every single time,” Libera said. “I just have this incredible positive feeling that the show is going to become more and more successful as we continue on.”
Ticket sales are already open for the final performances of “Curtains.” Tickets can be purchased on GoFan or at the door, with VIP tickets retailing for $30, general admission for $15, students and seniors for $12, and tickets with a Gold Card being $10.
”I’m very excited for our second weekend,” Bailey said. “I think it was a great first weekend. We got some quieter audiences and some louder audiences, but overall, everyone who came seemed like they adored the show, and that’s all that matters.”
The cast and crew will be performing on May 14 at 7 p.m., May 15 at 7 p.m., and May 16 at 7 p.m for the closing weekend of “Curtains.”
“It has everything you could want: it has the slow ballads, it has drama, it has comedy, it has the big show stopping numbers,” Bailey said. “So if you are a fan of any aspect of musical theatre at all, you should come see the show, because I promise it has it.”
