Everyone is stepping onto new ground. That’s the theme and reality of a new and original musical called “The Project,” written, performed and produced by Vashon High School students and opening this weekend.
Vashon High School (VHS) teachers Stephen Floyd and Steven Denlinger have served as advisors, but “The Project” is an entirely student-led production.
“I think this is a spectacular project,” Floyd said. “Students have designed and built the set, written and directed the play, choreographed dances, created the poster and written and taught the songs to the performers. It is the first time students have taken on all the major design, production, directing and technical responsibilities for a show in my 15 years at VHS.”
The genesis for the musical dates back three years to Denlinger’s English class and freshman student Hannah Fellbaum.
“I was in Mr. Denlinger’s creative writing class, and he saw potential (in me) for play writing,” Fellbaum said. “So, I wrote about what I knew — theater and backstage drama.”
Fellbaum set the scene at a performing arts high school in danger of being closed and included, she said, the romances and dramas that take place backstage.
All the students are trying to save the school while also competing to get into the same college. It’s about “a bunch of seniors trying to figure out what to do with the rest of their lives,” she said and added that she tried to make it relevant.
The relevance seems spot-on for this historic, first-time venture at VHS as Fellbaum is a senior with her sights set on majoring in theater at Goldsmiths, University of London in the fall. She’s been acting since the age of 11, though this is her first shot at both writing a stage play and directing.
“Directing is really cool,” she said. “I had an idea of what it would be like, but it turned into something totally different. A lot of the actors have never done this before, so it’s giving a crash course on acting and staging. The choreography is really simple and basic, but it’s working out well. Everyone takes direction well.”
Fellbaum wrote the script three years ago and has been doing revisions for the past two years. For musical director and VHS senior Kate Atwell, the timing has been a matter of months, not years.
“I started this past Christmas with the songs,” Atwell explained. “I took out my guitar and used the beats from Garage Band (on the computer). My songs were acoustic to start, and then I added piano and voice, and that really changed it.”
Atwell, who received a scholarship to attend College of Wooster in Ohio in the fall, is no stranger to performing or songwriting. She’s had roles in musicals since she was young, has opened for island musicians and performed with Sharing the Stage and open mic in high school. But writing for a musical was all new for the pre-professional, as is working with musical newcomers.
“I’m just beginning to bring the band in now,” Atwell said. “Some actors hadn’t sung in public before, just in the shower. I wanted to make it not intimidating, so I just used my guitar and went line by line. I’m excited to see how they’ve gained confidence. That’s really satisfying.”
Fellbaum confirmed that most everyone is new at what they are doing, so everyone’s “stepping onto new ground.”
The show will be performed at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday; and at 2 p.m. Sunday at the VHS theater. Tickets, at the door, are $7 for adults, $5 for students.
