Festival Preview: Xanadu

TROUPE 7023’S PRODUCTION

Xanadu almost never saw the lights of the Arab Musical Theatre stage. “At the end of each season, we do a big reveal to announce our shows for the following year,” said Brian Quillin, director of choral and musical theatre at Arab High School and Thespian troupe director. “We were planning on producing School House Rock Live! for our fall show, and the day before we announced, I mentioned to my assistant director, Taylor Hyatt, that I just did not feel great about that pick for us this year. His response was, ‘Don’t guffaw, but maybe we should take a look at Xanadu.’ I guffawed and said, ‘I don’t think so.’ But after 20 minutes of research and laughing hysterically, I called him back and said, ‘OK, let’s do it.’ That’s certainly not our normal mode of operation, but it seemed to work out pretty well. This year, we wanted something fun and lighthearted for our fall show. Xanadu was the perfect fit.”

The design of the show presented unique challenges for Arab’s program, which is housed in a school of about 750 students in a small town in northern Alabama. “Our home theatre is actually a concert stage in our school auditorium,” Quillin said. “With a 70-foot wide proscenium and no fly system, we have to get very creative with our production designs.”

For Xanadu, the solution was to include a 32-by-18-foot projection screen and four large scaffolding units, which establish different scene locations and support transitions. “Creating unique, original content for the entire show that was cohesive with other production elements was a big undertaking,” Quillin said. “We spent approximately six months just designing the projections. It’s really a simple set with lots of lighting and projection complexities that help propel the story forward.”

The show’s cast took matters into their own hands when it came to mastering Xanadu’s complex roller-skating choreography. “Skating was a new thing for me, but it was definitely a challenge we were willing to take,” said Anna Quillin, the Thespian senior who portrays Kira. “In June, the summer before the show, we took private lessons with an instructor in Madison, Ala. He taught us tricks, how to be smooth on skates, and how to present ourselves confidently.”

The show’s outrageous sense of humor and over-the-top characters appealed to Thespian senior Gloriannah Phillips, who plays Kira’s envious older sister Melpomene. “She’s kind of that evil person you love to hate, and it was really fun for me because I have always played good characters. I’ve never really played a villain before, so I enjoyed getting out of my comfort zone.”

For senior Carson Reed, who plays businessman Danny Maguire, Xanadu offered another memorable opportunity: The Alabama Chapter State Thespian Officer introduced the show at his state festival. “It’s one of those special experiences getting to see every single aspect of festival and then the pride of getting to see your show do so well,” Reed said. “Just getting to experience all the work that the State Thespian Officers put in and how much love they have for the event goes unmatched.”

Reed can’t wait for audiences at the International Thespian Festival to experience the show’s many theatre references. “I think Xanadu is made for theatre people,” Reed said. “The audience at ITF is going to understand every single joke. They are going to eat up the script, every single song. It is just such a Thespian-oriented show.”

“Something about our hometown is that not everybody here understands the dedication and hard work we put into these shows,” Phillips said. “But when you’re in a place with more than 4,000 kids who are just like you and who love what you do and understand the difficulties, it’s really cool.”

For Anna Quillin, who took the plunge to pursue theatre after watching her friends perform at ITF in Zombie Prom the summer following her freshman year, taking the stage in Lincoln with Xanadu is the ultimate culmination to her high school theatre journey. “We’re just so honored to perform our show on the international stage, and we cannot wait to see everyone else’s shows and get to applaud everyone else. We’re super excited for the whole experience.”