A fresh start to a new school year at OHS brings many promising events from clubs, sports, and more. The OHS theater department, for one, fascinated crowds yet again by putting on an excellent production of the musical Mean Girls. 

Following the extensive rehearsals everyone involved in drama went through, opening night for Mean Girls was on October 23rd and continued until October 26th. All of the hard work and diligence put into the musical surely paid off. 

“There’s been a lot of planning involved,” said Mandy Hoglund, sophomore. “From the advertisements, to the set making, to the choreography; everybody’s really played a major role in it.” 

Even though a significant amount of time and thought went into the creation of Mean Girls, the theater community persevered forward with the help of each other and the adults present. 

“We’re capable of running through things on our own, but we obviously have the adults to help guide us through it,” said Madison Fulmer, junior. 

Karson Cook, the theater teacher at OHS, in particular, is thought of by many as an outstanding director, and is frequently recognized for his contributions to the process of successfully putting the musical together. 

“Mr. C is an absolute source of light through all of our days…he’s very supportive, he’s very understanding, and he’s just a wonderful person and director,” Hoglund said.

New and vital technological improvements were also present in the theater department this year, and it immensely upgraded the performance.

“We were able to get a huge update at all of the campuses,” Cook said. “It’s been great, we have brand new speakers, brand new mics, brand new everything.”

These new improvements were extremely accommodating to everyone; from the audience’s overall experience watching the musical to the actors who had to quickly change in between scenes.

“I’m actually obsessed…in the dressing rooms I can hear them singing,” said Bryce Bartel, junior. “It’s really helpful because last year they didn’t have that so if I had to do a quick change I would just run and hope.”

The entire cast of Mean Girls did a wonderful job at portraying the iconic characters, and many were immensely excited to play the roles they were cast as. 

“Karen is one of my dream roles…I even dyed my hair blonde for it, you know, why not?” said Madelene Salisbury, junior. 

The students at OHS take their theater passions seriously, and they strive to do the characters they perform justice by being as similar to them as possible. 

“Regina George being super blonde is not as prominent I feel like as the dumb blonde stereotype that Karen really embodies,” Salisbury said. 

Because the characters from Mean Girls are so well-known and iconic, it was nerve-racking for those who played major roles in the musical.

“This time I got nervous because Damien has high notes, but we’re good now,” Bartel said. 

Each show usually comes with a little tension but the theater department is great at overcoming those nerves. 

“You’re always a little nervous going into it…but it’s fun to be up there performing,” said Savannah Nielsen, senior.  

Everyone who is a part of theater at OHS strongly believes that by being involved in drama you not only get to perform, work backstage, and do various other things, but that you get to additionally learn valuable lessons that can be applied in many aspects of life. 

“Professionalism is really important in theater and that’s what I’ve been taught,” Bartel said. “It teaches you how to be social, and professional, and it teaches you how to speak right.”

The theater community works together daily for hours on end when preparing to put on performances such as Mean Girls. 

“I mean you’re with these people for hours every day,” Nielsen said. “But it’s really fun because you’re creating a show.”

Although the students in the theater department tend to be with one another for long periods of time, it does not deter from the positive and kind environment that they create with one another. 

“I love everybody that I’ve interacted with throughout this whole process; they’re all so kind,” Fulmer said. “As much as it’s like ‘oh drama club!’ it’s actually drama-free.”

The positive environment goes hand in hand with the escapism that theater provides the moment everyone steps into character. 

“No matter what kind of day you’ve had, you’re immediately transported into another world…you get to play out someone else’s life,” Salisbury said. 

The theater community is very devoted to their art and it shows throughout the outstanding musicals OHS provides. The camaraderie encourages theater students to continue following their passions. 

“It’s really that close niche community that always keeps everyone who does theater coming back,” Cook said.