SHS Choir to travel down the Mississippi

The Sisters High School music theater class is serving up a musical medley of many of the songs from the Broadway musical "Big River," written by William Hauptman for the stage.

All the music from the show was written by Roger Miller, a very popular musical theater composer and country music singer-songwriter.

The show is based on the story, "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn," and follows Huck and Jim on their journey down the Mississippi River.

The class is not doing the full-scale musical, but a 20-minute performance of selected music from the show. Students auditioned for different solos within the piece. Solos include ones told from Jim's point of view, like "Free at Last," sung by Alec Gannon. Other songs include "River in the Rain," sung by Jesse Glanz and Kendall Griffin; "Waitin' for the Light to Shine," solos by Alana Lukens and Anna Bartlett; and the reprise solo by Alec Gannon.

There is a variety of music within the show - there are light hearted and humorous songs such as "Arkansas," "Do You Wanna Go to Heaven," "Hand for the Hog," and "The Boys." The show also includes slower, more somber songs and songs with a message such as "Waitin' for the Light to Shine," "River in the Rain," and "Free at Last."

"I had the great honor of doing 'Big River' professionally, and the music and messages in the show have stayed with me," said musical theater Director Rick Johnson. "The idea of equality among all people resonated with me. I want to pass it on to my students."

Members of the music theater class have been working on the show's music since September, and have looked at the meanings of all the songs and applying them to their own life. Students also looked at the show as a whole, learning about Broadway shows, and specifically about "Big River" and the message behind it.

Students will be in costume for the show - costumes that show the time and place of the musical and are positioned around the stage for different solos and songs.

All Sisters choirs (6th, 7th, and 8th), jazz choir, and the music theater class will be performing their songs on Tuesday, November 15, at 7 p.m. (doors open at 6:45 p.m.) in the Sisters High School auditorium. The concert is free to the public.