The Expected Releases from the Performing Arts Department This Spring

By Isabel Sinnott

A&E Editor

“Miss Gender” logo from the play written by Keche Arrington and set to be performed by the Hammond theatre department

As the 2020-2021 school year draws to a close, the arts department at Hammond has started to work on a few final performances and showcases. The theatre, dance and music programs have all worked on different performances and acts throughout the second semester, and as there is just about a month left before seniors leave, and a month and a half until the end of the year, the various performances should soon be released to the rest of the school.

The theatre department has several different shows in progress, the first being Miss Gender, which has started being recorded and is planned to be released on May 17. Miss Gender is a fun play that stars senior Avery Moe in the lead role of Lou and has a strong 14 person cast, and has been in the works for several months by students in ITS and the rest of the theatre department, with a trailer set to be released in the next few days.

The theatre department has several other performances coming up, including a virtual showcase with submissions edited together, welcomed from any Hammond student. Everyone is welcome to submit a song or dance through the Google Form: (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfgNX8CzETJsPh2JRykg7dIUNeRwXdFW_qV766uEOfu9HhQKw/viewform?edit_requested=true), and though not every performance submitted may be chosen, this is a great way for any Hammond student who enjoys performing to be able to participate in a showcase.

The dance and theatre departments have also come together to put together a showcase for the end of the year specifically for seniors. Recently, the school system approved small groups to be able to have in person performances, and so these two performing arts departments decided to host a showcase specifically for seniors on May 21. There will be a variety of acts, from singing, scenes, solo and group dances, with some solo and some group or partner acts.

The music department has also been preparing for their spring performance- the orchestra department at Hammond released a video compilation of several different pieces last winter, and so in this new semester, several more are expected to be released as well. In May, they plan to release a concert of three different songs that they have been rehearsing all throughout the second semester. 

As HCPSS has already allowed students to be able to have some in school performances now at the end of the year, it is likely that in the new school year things will be starting to get back to normal and so the performing arts will be able to have live shows again. However, the possibility of having virtual shows does provide more opportunities for students to participate or send in videos and be able to be a part of shows, and so keeping some parts of the virtual showcases could help students be more involved.