Clarke students bring dance, character depth to ‘A Chorus Line’

If the musical “A Chorus Line” sounds familiar, it’s because it has been performed on the stage at Clarke Community High School before.

The drama department performed the musical in the spring of 1998.

“We knew that we had a lot of seniors,” said Don May, the show’s director, “and we wanted a lot of big parts because there’s 19 main parts instead of four or five. So, we chose it because of the numbers we have.”

The show

The show’s plot is focused on 17 Broadway dancers who are auditioning for spots in a chorus line.

The musical's set is the bare stage of a Broadway theater during an audition. The show is about the personalities of the performers and choreographer as they describe the events that have shaped their lives and their decisions to become dancers.

“A Chorus Line” will be performed 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday in the auditorium at Clarke Community High School. Tickets are $6 for reserved seats, $4 adult general-admission and $2 student general-admission.

The dancing

When asked what the public will like most about the musical, May said it will be the dancing.

“This probably has more dance than any show that we’ve done, except for when we did this before. That’s pretty cool,” he said.

While there may not be a lot of glitz and glamor with the sets, the show will shine with the student actors and their performances, May said.

“There’s a lot of depth to the characters, and they build their characters really well,” he said.

Getting ready

In the past couple of weeks, Clarke students rehearsed a lot in preparation for the show. May said a lot of time and concentration has been spent on dance and choreography.

“The choreography is more difficult than it was 15 years ago when we did it before. We have a different choreographer,” he said. “There’s a lot of boys, a lot of kids who don’t have dance experience that we’re trying to teach. It’s a lot fun.”

“A Chorus Line” doesn’t have a “true plot” like other musicals, May said.

“It’s more of just a story about people and how they develop,” he said. “We hear stories from childhood, when they learn to dance until the end of a career. That kind of relates to life. It relates to a lot of jobs, instead of just dancing.”