BWW Blog: Rebecca Donaldson - Confessions of a High School Theater Addict

The busiest times of the musical theater world is quickly coming amongst us, especially for high school thespians- spring show season. Community and local theaters are either holding auditions or waiting for a stressful week of tech before productions that have the potential to be massive moments in the theater and community history. For high school students, this is the most exhilarating, yet draining, season of the year. Fortunately- I am one of these students.

I live in the Hilton Head Island area of South Carolina, and when I say the performing arts are my entire life, that is an understatement. I habitually find myself compromising sleep and homework for something as simple as memorizing lines or counting out the steps of a dance break for a large musical number. I never know when I am biting off more than I can chew until it is much too late to do anything about it, but, I am a passionate optimist, therefore I am a strong believer in the "if you love what you are doing, you'll never work a day in your life" concept.

I attend Hilton Head Christian Academy, a school with an excelling fine arts program in both music and theater. This year our school is producing an astonishing rendition of the timeless classic, Guys and Dolls. Productions in most recent years include: All Shook Up, High School Musical 2, Annie, and Beauty and the Beast. Both Annie and Beauty and the Beast were near sellouts and smash hits in the community. The tradition is set to continue and, yet again, the bar will be raised even higher; leaving the show's audience once again astonished and in awe of what sights, sounds, and emotions they experience in attendance.

I am honored to be a part of a show and department, with a cast and crew full of energy, spunk, and graciousness. The show follows the story of Sky Masterson, (played by Henry Clark, a theatrically established senior at HHCA) a gambler who under his suave façade is a hopeless romantic, unexpectedly falling in love with the local missionary Sarah Brown (played by Jacey Robinson, a mere freshman and rising musical star), and the leading gambler Nathan Detroit (played by senior Joseph Lankowski, no stranger to the stage) who can barely break away from his "dopey crap game" to be with his fiancé of fourteen years Miss Adelaide (played by Olivia Williams a junior in her first prominent role) who yearns for marriage so much it is making her ill. The show follows the unraveling love story of the two couples and the business that surrounds them in 1950's New York City. While the cast is phenomenal, my passion for theater would not have blossomed into what it is if it was not for our exceptional director Michelle McElroy. With a firm hold on the show and always smiling face, she directs us with poise and perfection. Our cast has a very eclectic group of individuals and with her talent; we will grace the stage with precision and excellence.

I am very excited to share my journey of my high school's production of Guys and Dolls with you over the next few weeks. Performing and being on stage is where I often feel more at home than in my own house. Perhaps I should have even started this blog with "Hello, my name is Rebecca Donaldson, and I am a musical theater addict." After all, you can take the girl out of the theater but you most certainly cannot take the theater out of the girl.

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