Musically- and theatrically-involved students are back to the grind for this year’s highly anticipated Showtime performance.

Students typically spend 40 mintues a week working with directors on polishing their performance, choir director Dwayne Dunn said.

“For students in five to six acts, that adds up to several hours a week, but it is the only way to produce the high standards that Showtime is known for,” he said.

The commitment did not stop senior Alyssa Waller, who will be appearing in 14 acts, six of which are features. In addition, Waller noted that performers must take charge of their own parts and work together to make sure every move is memorized in order to put together a fluid act.

“We have to coordinate all of that ourselves and it’s really hard to have to tell each other what to do and take leadership,” Waller said. “Whoever is in charge of the act tells me their vision, then I just figure out how to work with all the people.

Like Waller, senior Sydney Hawley jumped at the opportunity to go above and beyond.

“I’m in more featured acts this year, so I’m liking it a lot more,” she said.

The acts with large casts proved especially difficult to organize, due to conflicts with other extracurriculars and events.

“With so many students involved in varsity athletics, other school activities, jobs, church groups, etc. it is hard to coordinate schedules to rehearse together with the directors,” Dunn said.

With a limited schedule, there is a lot of emphasis put on practice outside of rehearsal. The performers are largely responsible for their own preparation, and in no aspect of the show is this more demanding than with the choreography.

“It can be really tough, and we’ve had to change it a lot, and it’s hard to remember it all, especially with all the different songs that we’re doing,” Hawley said. “I try to match the words with the moves, but if they don’t match, that’s when I struggle.”

Once the dust is settled and the final product is assembled, the performers will come out weary but accomplished, having created a show all their own.

“I enjoy seeing what the students come up with, both musically and in their staging. They have some very creative ideas,” Dunn said. “They also learn a lot about working together, compromise, resiliency, and hard work. You start to see them taking charge, solving problems and working together, and they begin to seem more like adults as they accomplish these things.”

Showtime performances will be in the theater starting at 7:30 p.m. April 25-27.