"The Sound of Music" Spring 2017 Musical

Senior Reflections

ELENA R (Maria) I remember every opening night. Laughing quietly with my friends as we scurry to the wings, the churn in my stomach and the race of my heartbeat as the lights dim. Taking a moment to calmmyself, I hear the familiar words “Welcome toWildwood’s production of... Please turn off all cell phones as they interfere with our wireless sound system. Now sit back, relax, and

enjoy the show.”I’m know I’mhome. As a freshman inmy first musical production, The Drowsy Chaperone,Iwatchedinaweastheseniors,whohaddonethiscountlesstimesbefore,gotready to make their grand entrances. I couldn’t even imagine that there would be a time when that would be me. Flash forward to this year’s fall play, my last one, Much Ado. I stood excitedly in the wings with my best friend Kayla, red lights flooding over us, awaiting our entrance. It was closing night, and we spoke in hushed tones, dumbstruck by how quickly time flies. I’ve now done 14 productions at Wildwood, and it never gets old. From auditions to closing night rituals, every single moment I spend in this department, in this theatre, brings me an incredible amount of joy. I have no idea what I did to get this lucky, but I can honestly say that this experience has changed my life. Thank you to my best friends Kayla, Sophie, Fiona, and Mila. I want to especially thank Julian Corbett and Bella Harris for being my mentors and most importantly my friends. They encouraged my love for theater, and for that I am forever grateful. And lastly, thank you to Stephanie and Melissa. I can say, without hesitation, that they have been the best directors I have ever had.

SOPHIE U (Frau Schmidt) The theatre that you are currently sitting in has been home to some of my favorite memories from the past six years at Wildwood. From a young age, I found the art of acting engaging. The idea of becoming someone new, someone who is totally different than who I am, was enough to enchant me. Wildwood has been supportive of this desire ever since my

first audition for Anything Goes in 7th grade. I can safely say that I would not be the person I amwithout this department. For years, I have read the Senior Reflections and always thought about what I would write, however, this daydreamwas bittersweet. It feels weird, for lack of a betterword, tobewritingaboutmyexperiences in thePerformingArtsDepartment because it means that they are coming to an end, something that I am not willing to accept yet. I want to thank Stephanie and Melissa for everything they have ever done for me, whether it be helpingme to experiment with newactingmethods or being shoulders to cry on.You have both impacted my life in monumental ways, and I am so grateful to know you both. Thank you to the seniors in these productions. You have becomemy theatre family, and I don’t know what I would do without you. I am so excited to see where you all end up and am grateful we got to be in this department together. I could not imagine my high school career without rehearsals, show weeks, cast parties and strikes, and am happy that I got to be in as many productions as I did. Thank you, Wildwood Performing Arts Department, for everything. I love you. I hope you enjoy our production of The Sound of Music, we have put every part of ourselves into thismusical, and I hope you lovewatching it asmuch as I’ve enjoyed being in it.