Staff writer
Broadway is known for having the greatest theater productions in the world, and a trip to see three shows on Broadway inspired nine Marion High School students to strive for an outstanding fall musical.
A group of nine students and 14 adults spent June 26 through 29 in New York. They saw the musicals “The Lion King” and “Wicked” and the play “Blithe Spirit.”
“It showed us what is a really good show,” junior Landon Leiker said.
Other shows, including professional musicals in Wichita, don’t compare, he said.
Seeing Broadway shows forced junior Michael Kirkpatrick to reconsider how difficult choreography in school musicals was.
“It was really cool,” he said.
Students estimated the theaters for the musicals would hold 2,000 to 3,000 people. Junior Brandon Meierhoff said he couldn’t imagine what performing on one of those stages would be like.
Teacher Janet Killough thought the trip instilled in the students a desire to do better.
“I don’t think they’ll be so satisfied with mediocrity,” she said. “They were so excited. If you could have just seen their faces.”
Killough said it was an opportunity for the students to see something they might not otherwise. While in New York, the students went sightseeing.
Among the sights they visited were the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, Central Park, the Empire State Building, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Junior Tristen Snelling said she had never seen so many people in one place before.
Students on the trip were Kirkpatrick, Leiker, Meierhoff, Snelling, Emily Hett, Megan Overton, Annie Whitaker, Alex Young, and Olivia Young.
MHS will present “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” in November. Auditions will be Sept. 10.