Author: Ivy Miller

Student Spotlight: Ainsley Eidam

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Ainsley Eidam ’23 on the set of Footloose (Photo Courtesy of Ben Zhao ’22)

by Cate Griffin ’23

After an unprecedented year in education and entertainment alike, Wyoming Seminary was finally able to put on a show after five months of rehearsal and new protocol to follow- the iconic musical Footloose. Ainsley Eidam (‘23) has been a fixture at Sem theater since her time in elementary school, where her first Sem role was as a planet in a kindergarten production. As she made her way into high school, she’s been actively involved in theater since her freshman year. Now a junior and the lead female role, she speaks to me about the musical and provides some insight into the creative process, her character, and the Sem theater experience overall. 

How would you describe the environment of the musical? 

It’s definitely a more fun musical than we’ve done in the past. The musical itself is about having fun and about being who you are and the music is so good and so much fun to perform and it’s just overall always been a fun process. We work hard, but we still have fun. Sometimes it gets chaotic, but we all are really great performers, and at the end of the day it all comes together. 

How is this musical different from ones in the past?

This is only my second musical I’ve done at Sem. The first musical was in 2019, it was 1776, and as beautiful of a performance as that was, there’s obviously a huge difference between a musical about the Founding Fathers and a musical about having fun. There were definitely a lot more wigs in that show… this show, after the year we’ve had, is just perfect. It allows people to escape from the place the world is in at the moment and just have fun and dance and… hoedown. 

What do you think is special about this performance?

We have a super talented senior cast and they’ve all worked so hard to make this performance as fabulous as it is and they’ve made my performance in this theater so incredible and so enjoyable and they really bring this musical to life. And also the cowboy boots. 

How would you describe your character? 

Ariel is … there’s a line in the show that says “just a church goin gal with some badass red cowboy boots” and I think that suits her. She’s a preacher’s daughter who’s had some loss in her life, and she is finding her way in the world and where she belongs, and finding herself in a town that won’t let her be who she wants.  

What do you think is the most important message in the musical? 

Be yourself, because… why not?! At the end of the day, who’s there to judge you but you? Also, to wear cowboy boots. 

Who’s your favorite character in the show?

 I’m a fan of Cowboy Bob.

Who is Cowboy Bob?? 

He sings the opening number of act 2, and I think he really brings to light, for a lot of the characters, what it’s like to express yourself through dance. 

What do you think theater brings to schools? 

I think the arts are one of the most important outlets of self-expression that we as students have. I’ve been performing for my whole life and I know many others who have and whose first musical was Footloose. They had just as much fun as we are, and it’s such a great experience and you can make so many new friends and lifelong memories onstage and offstage. 

What’s it like performing during the pandemic?

It’s definitely different, I mean we put together this whole show and we have this added factor of “are we wearing masks, are we not wearing masks”, it’s not like athletics like where we can be without masks onstage and have masks offstage because singing and projecting and things necessary for theater are a lot more dangerous with the spread of Covid. But performing in masks is difficult because playing off other actors is so much of what the performance is, but we make it work, and we’ve worked so hard in the last five months to get the show to where it is. We have special masks to help us work and we’re following protocols and doing our best. 

What was the greatest difficulty with putting on the show? 

Probably acting with the masks on presents a difficulty, and dancing in cowboy boots. Like I said earlier, playing off of other actors is so important, and not being able to see another actor’s face makes it much more difficult. And cowboy boots are slippery, so. 

Any closing remarks about the show?

Probably just that I want to thank the whole cast and crew for making these 5 months, which is so much longer than we would usually do, so much fun and turning this show into an incredible performance. Everything about this show came together in just the right way. The directing, the costuming, the set, which is absolutely beautiful- you don’t see all the work that gets done backstage, but it really is what makes the magic happen. Thanks to everybody for supporting the arts, especially now, and welcome to Bomont! 

Drama! Drama!

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by Erica Zhu ’23

The Footloosians of Sem kicked off their Sunday shoes mid-February to give us a wonderful performance. Between the angelic voices and energetic dancing, Willard and his crew’s Mama Says – played by our one and only Gram Dogherty ’22, Ari Froehlich ’24, Benecio Carpenter ’24, and Michael Vodzak ’24 seemed to steal the show.

Even backstage, it’s hard to stand still without singing along or gaining some extra pep in your step. Everyone played their part in contributing to the magical love story between Ren and Ariel (Kieran Sherry ’22 and Ainsley Edam ’23). From problem solving with costumes and the set to bringing out energy when they danced and sung. Chuck Cranston played by Liam Philips-Magraw ’23 had us raising our fists. We also had sympathized with Julia Poole ’22 and Jake Ruderman ’22 who played concerned parents Vi and Shaw Moore. As one of our longest running shows after a period of being unable to runt at all, Footloose proved to be successful from it’s most intimate moments to to the classic comedy we know and love.

Being out on stage means we always need a crew. Footloose needed about three: one for costumes, one for the book , and of course, one backstage. Footloose had an impressive number of quick changes for its last scene, the prom. During this scene, most actors traded their leather or jean jackets for suits, pretty dresses and even different wigs! The booth was also given a run for its money, being both the command center and the place where all cues were put into action. Thanks to their management, the show went on without a hitch. Last but not least, we had a backstage crew that set the scenes and moved all the heavy machinery they could while staying virtually invisible to the audience. Both managers stage right and left were able to keep the show going seamlessly regardless of a set malfunction or traffic jam backstage.

Cast of Footloose (Photo Courtesy of Ben Zhao ’22)

Wyoming Seminary Celebrates Lunar New Year

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by Maria Wang ’23

Wyoming Seminary celebrated Lunar New Year with an assembly at the Kirby Center for the Creative Arts (KCCA), where Asian students had the opportunity to showcase their culture and traditions to the entire school community. In addition, the school also provided kitchens to Asian students to cook food from their hometown to celebrate Lunar New Year.

Jennifer Brown, the organizer of the Lunar New Year assembly said, “As the international coordinator this year my role is to find ways to highlight and give the stage to our international students at different points. Lunar New Year is such a colorful and exciting festival, and it’s a great time to really display all those cultures.” When being asked how she organized the event she explained, “I might be the key person that’s driving the idea to this but it could never have happened without student leadership. They were absolutely essential!”

As impressed as many audiences are, Brown has other other unique opinions about the Lunar New Year assembly. “I am so impressed at how confident all the student presenters are,” she continued, “I have taught most of the presenters before.”

“When they first came to high school or first came to the states they tend to be a little more shy or quiet. Then, seeing some of those students get up on stage and just speak so eloquently, well, and proudly about their culture and heritage is just incredible.”

Allison Luo ’23 performed a wonderful piece of traditional Chinese dance, she explained, “I want to present to more students the traditional Chinese Culture.” When asked if she enjoyed the experience of performing, she answered, “Absolutely. As a Chinese, I am very proud of contributing to the celebration of Chinese New Year. Although choreographing and dancing this piece isn’t easy, when I heard the cheers from the audience, I knew it was worth it.”

Lio was not only a performer at the KCCA but also the main chef of Lunar New Year dinner. She said, “The experience of cooking and eating with other students reminds me of cooking with my family when I was home. I was so happy to see everyone put lots of effort into the dinner and it was excellent to see all the other students sitting together at one table, eating together, just like one big family!”

The Lunar New Year assembly demonstrates the diverse cultural environment and the involvement of students from different cultural backgrounds in the Wyoming Seminary School community. The efforts of all students and faculty put into this activity is incredible.