After being impacted by the Coronavirus for well over a year, theatre is back and is stronger than ever. Theatre programs throughout the country will be joining together and performing on November 12 and 13, 2021 to celebrate the return of theatre after a long intermission due to the Pandemic in a show called All Together Now by Music Theatre International. St. Vrain’s version of the show will include students from Frederick, Erie, Longmont, and Skyline High Schools.

The shutdown of the theatre not only took away the ability for theatres to do what they love most: perform, but it also took away the sense of community that had been formed over the years of performing.

“Theatre kiddos are social by nature. COVID was hard for most of them, as it wasn’t just losing the performances that meant so much to them–they lost a sense of community and camaraderie,” says Mr. Brandon Coon, the theatre director at Frederick High. “That’s why this production means so much: it’s not just that our students are back onstage, but that we are All Together Now. We not only want to restore the theatre community that was interrupted by the pandemic, but make it stronger than ever,” he adds.

While each program operates independently for the most part, that doesn’t mean that there isn’t communication between programs. There is typically only one theatre director per school, which makes it difficult to get a second set of eyes on the different parts of a production, and just like there is a community of students, there is also a community of passionate theatre directors.

“Despite how much of a community project every theatrical production is, teaching theatre is very insular. Most of us are the only member of the drama department at our schools,” says Mr. Coon. “This has made working with the directors from the other schools so special–with other adults to bounce ideas off and to refine performances is wonderful,” he adds.

Along with the sense of community, the Coronavirus also took a lot of funding from the theatre programs. All Together Now will help significantly to make up for the revenue lost in the year that theatre was shut down which will help programs pay for supplies for future performances. It will also bring the theatre communities back together, and most importantly, allow students to perform again.

“With our theatres sitting dark for so long, every auditorium in the district has some repairs and supplies that are desperately needed. Unfortunately, a year without shows means that our programs have gone a year without revenue and with the price of goods like lumber and makeup sky high, our theatre programs have been hit hard financially,” says Mr. Coon.

If you are interested in seeing St. Vrain’s performance of All Together Now, tickets are available here for $12 for students and seniors, and $15 for adults. There is one performance on Friday, November 12 at 7:00 pm and two performances on Saturday, November 13, with the first one starting at 3:00 pm and the second one starting at 7:00 pm. Each performance takes place at Longmont High School and benefits all of the schools involved in the production by providing funds to each program, and by growing the St. Vrain theatre community to be bigger and better than ever.