Zombie Prom Auditions

By Willow Stephenson 

It is musical season here at PCHS, and the The Arts Academy (TAA) is putting together a wonderful production this year; Zombie Prom. A feel good musical, with a cheesy love story and a catchy soundtrack. This musical was chosen by Taylor Gilman, one of the directors of the musical and the drama teacher for PCHS. 

 “We chose Zombie Prom for this years' musical because we all need a little more fun in our lives! Last years’ musical covered some pretty heavy material, and this year we just want to celebrate our amazing students with a lively, hilarious show!” stated Gilman.

Auditions for the musical were held on Monday, Dec.13, and Tuesday, Dec.14, with a nearly overwhelming number attending. TAA was welcoming to all though, excited to see such enthusiasm for the thespian arts. 

Auditions are known to be a rather anxiety inducing event, so it is always wonderful to see students overcome their fear for a shot to get on stage. When asked why he auditioned, freshman Craig Allen responded “Fear. That was the only word to describe it. I was the youngest guy auditioning, and one of the youngest people auditioning, so I genuinely felt like I had no chance, but once I got into the room, and especially once I did my audition I felt in my element.”

The anxiety of additions was incomparable to that caused by the cast list being released. Sadly, many were denied a role, as the number of auditioning actors outweighed the number of roles available. The lucky few who were accepted were, as can be imagined, overjoyed. When asked how they felt after seeing the cast list, Freshman, Melody Cannon said, “I was very excited when I first saw the cast list. I was so excited to even get a non speaking part in this play. I'm so excited to work with all these brilliant people and this amazing musical that the teachers are helping us create. Thank you everyone!”

Luckily, TAA holds two major acting productions every year, so there will be more opportunities to audition in the future. When asked what advice she had for future auditioning actors, Gilman said, “Take as many TAA classes as you can and seek out additional training as well! When you are in a musical, you need to be able to sing, act, and dance. Luckily-we offer all of those classes at our school…but my most important advice is to not be afraid of rejection. In life, we all fail. A lot. So it's important to have a growth mindset and take failure or disappointment and turn it into something productive!”