Students in Williamsburg-James City County Schools had the day off Tuesday, but a few dozen spent their day on the prairies of Oklahoma — or as close as you can get in James City County.
Warhill theater is putting on its third production of the year this weekend with one of Broadways’s most famous shows, Rodgers and Hammerstein’s beloved musical classic Oklahoma!
The show tells the story of cowboys and farm girls in the Oklahoma territory on the eve of statehood and the love triangle between the farmhand Jud, the cowboy Curly and the beautiful Laurey.
Oklahoma is a large production, requiring a big enough set for several dance numbers and a sizable ensemble. Many high schools would make it their major focus for the year. For the Lions’ Roar Theater Company, it is the students’ third time on stage — and they still have another production to go.
Warhill’s theater season began with a one-act competition. They followed it with Noises Off, a three-act farce play by English playwright Michael Frayn. Oklahoma is the current production, and in the spring, the company will take on Shrek The Musical.
Four shows in one school year is unprecedented for most high school theater programs, let alone staging two musicals, but Warhill theater director Jessie Grant is confident in her students.
“Everybody goes, ‘Wait, what are you doing? We don’t do that,’” she said. “And I go, ‘Well, we do.’”
Warhill is a relatively young theater department, and Grant is a relatively recent addition. Grant joined the program in 2012 after teaching stints in North Carolina and Maine. A family illness brought her to Virginia, but the Warhill job has stood out to her.
“Sometimes it just feels like fate,” she said. “I believe that.”
Since coming to Warhill, Grant said the program has “exploded.”
“We’ve almost quadrupled the program in two-and-a-half years,” she said.
Part of that could be due to Grant herself.
Kayla Walker, a member of the ensemble for Oklahoma, said she became acquainted with Grant after being placed in her class by mistake. She stayed in the class after learning more about Grant and her approach to the program.
“I just fell in love with the way she did things,” Walker said.
In Grant’s words, the key is to base productions on student collaboration.
“I don’t see this as my show,” she said. “I have a student music director, student lighting directors.”
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See “Oklahoma!” in Concert
The show opens Thursday and runs through Saturday. Showtimes are at 7 p.m. Jan. 29 through 31 at the Warhill High School auditorium, with a matinee at 2 p.m. Jan. 31.
Admission is $10 for all seating.
For more information, call the Warhill theater office office at 757-565-9100, or visit the Facebook page here.
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Grant said every part of the company is important for every production, and players may serve many roles — a leading role in one production might not guarantee a lead in the next.
Hollyann Bucci knows this from experience. This school year alone, she has been a lead actor, a crew director and a member of the ensemble.
“I’ve been doing this since sixth grade, and I’ve kept doing it all the way through this year,” she said. “Depending on the show, you can fill a lot of different roles.”
That collaboration, combined with a welcoming attitude and support from staff, has contributed to the company’s growth. Support also comes from the company itself.
“If a kid is willing to bust their butt and be on stage, I will put them on stage,” Grant said. “It’s hard, but it will be worth it.”
It is worth it for their achievements on the stage, but it is also worth it for the connections they make behind the scenes.
“It’s a family,” Grant said. “A wonderfully dysfunctional family.”
Oklahoma opens Thursday and runs through Saturday at the Warhill auditorium.
