Lamar holds boot camp where ‘Grease’ is the Word

Lamar’s theater, dance and choir program held a mock audition for “Grease the Musical” on Thursday, Sept.14, in the auditorium after school.  

As this is the first year Lamar’s Fine Arts program has held a boot camp for their upcoming musical, directors wished for it to be a positive learning experience to those who have not been exposed to any prior auditions.  All who wish to come are welcome, however, the boot camp is more closely geared toward students who are unsure if a musical is something they would truly enjoy taking part in. 

“In a professional audition, this kind of experience would absolutely never happen, but we are doing this because we really want our students to learn what that process is like,” Lori Woods, dance and drill team instructor, said. “We want people who wouldn’t normally audition for a musical, we want them to try something new.  I think this will give them that kind of opportunity to see what they should expect.” 

Woods taught half of the dance – it was used as an example for what to expect in the boot camp – to give students a head-start in learning the choreography for the real auditions.  Patrick Holcomb, the theater teacher, will then talk through what will be expected in terms of the singing and acting portion of the audition.  Students were encouraged to ask questions they thought necessary while they were in a safe, non-competitive learning environment.

“People will come in and find what it is all about, even if they do end up saying ‘eh, this isn’t for me,’”  Holcomb said.  ” I think that is totally fine, but it will at least let them ask questions, work through their jitters and get a feel for the environment they will be in.  This is really the time they really can ask anything, no question is too small or insignificant.”

Auditions for “Grease The Musical” are Oct. 3-5, and the production will take place the first weekend of February at the Center for Visual and Performing Arts.  Blue Curtain will aid in the production, and the ViQueens, Lamar’s drill team, will play as ensemble and be involved in scenes such as prom and “Beauty School Dropout.”      

“I’m not going to be scouring the boot camp for a person to play Sandy or Danny, but I think that is exactly what makes this such a good opportunity,” Holcomb said. “I’m here to help, and I am very excited to see it all put together.”