What it's really like to be in a high school musical

It's a whole new world for some of us. Aladdin is the musical Airport High School is performing this year. Rehearsals started on Monday, September 16, and will continue every Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday until Wednesday, November 20. The musical will be held on Thursday, November 21.

Many people don't know how long cast members rehearse for the musical. Starting on September 16, rehearsals were every Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday from 6 to 9 PM. They had about 5 days to learn all the songs. They have 10 days to learn all the scenes that don't sing. They have 7 days to learn all the choreography. While this may seem like a lot, it's truly not much. Only 15 hours to learn a total of 23 songs. Only 30 hours to learn the acting portions. Only 21 hours to learn the choreography. Less than a day for most of them.

The cast runs through the whole show 6 times before we perform our first show. The last three rehearsals are five hours long.

The first 5 rehearsals were days that the cast learned all the songs. The days were long. We’d often pause our singing multiple times to make sure we were singing the notes exactly right. Most of the cast stays in Ms. Hines’ (the chorus teacher) room after school to wait for rehearsals instead of going home and then driving back. Those who were new to the musical life would forget to bring food or money for food, or would forget to bring a charger for their phone that would, inevitably, die.

Currently, the cast has choreography rehearsal two times a week, and blocking rehearsals (the non-singing parts) once a week. Choreography rehearsals can be tiring. A lot of people are doing different things, and your first run through, especially when the music is played for the first time with it, can be stressful. Moves have to be perfectly timed with the music for it to look good. It's best if everyone practices the choreography at home too, just to make sure everyone has the timing right.

Airport’s Aladdin has a cast of about 28 members. About 6 members of the cast are seniors, all of which have main roles. Aladdin, Genie, Jasmine, Jafar, Babkak, and the Sultan are all played by seniors. There are a total of 11 ensemble members.

While it can be tiring and stressful at times, being in the musical is worth it. The cast knows our hard work will pay off in the end. After all, musicals are our passion. It's what drives us through every awful split and stretch. We can't wait for everyone to come see the show. All of us would appreciate if you did, and we’d like to think everyone watching would have a good time, too.