Every year, the Spotlight Players has a show reveal, where everyone interested in being a part of theatre for the school year can go to learn the shows for the upcoming year. Theatre director Mrs. Cori Nelson enlists the help of the thespian troupe officers for deciding the shows that will be performed.

“What we do is I meet with my officers, and I have them start thinking and brainstorming about shows that they would love to do,” Mrs. Nelson said. “Then I present some things that I have on my mind, and then we all discuss and take a vote.”

Mrs. Nelson has the final decision of shows, but she enjoys having the input of the kids who will actually be the ones performing.

“It’s important that it’s not just all about what I wanna do, it’s what the club wants to do,” Mrs. Nelson said.

The shows for this year are “The Curious Savage” for the fall play and “The Wizard of Oz” for the spring musical. Instead of the comedic play the Spotlight Players performed last year, “The Curious Savage” is a combination of comedy and drama. Mrs. Nelson is excited for the challenge of this genre and for what her cast members will bring to it.

“Last year, our main production was ‘Noises Off,’ which was a farce, so it was a lot of physical comedy,” Mrs. Nelson said. “I’m excited for ‘The Curious Savage’ because the actors get to show a side that maybe they haven’t shown before.”

Senior Tristan Ratterman, president of the thespian troupe and lead in “The Curious Savage,” is also excited for the challenge of the new genre.

“It’s a great change of pace from the usual comedies that we do because it’s just a great opportunity to reach into an area of acting that you never really get to do,” Ratterman said.

On the other hand, both Mrs. Nelson and Ratterman are nervous for certain obstacles regarding the shows. There was a huge turnout for auditions for “The Curious Savage,” compiled of both old and new faces, and of extremely talented individuals.

“I had 120 people apply to be on this show, and there’s only 11 cast members,” Mrs. Nelson said. “Unfortunately, I can’t have all those people on crew because it would turn non-productive.”

Though grateful for the huge interest kids took in being a part of the show, Mrs. Nelson knew it would be difficult picking the perfect people to fit the roles. She wished she could give everyone the chance.

Ratterman agrees the amount of people, especially those who are new, will be a difficulty for this year. The new kids will have to become used to the way the Spotlight Players works, while simultaneously striving to reach their peak performances.

“There are a lot of new people, and it’s going to be a learning process for them because we’re doing two really hard shows,” Ratterman said. “They’re probably going to hate us about midway through, but in the end, they will come out with so much more than what they went into it with.”