For the annual 10th annual Whitewater Spectacular, the WHS Choral Department is putting the finishing touches on the “American Tribal Love-Rock Musical Hair.”
“Hair” is a stage work in two acts that tells the story of the “tribe,” a group of politically active, long-haired hippies of the “Age of Aquarius” living a bohemian life in New York City and fighting against conscription into the Vietnam War.
Musical Director Richard Prouty and Artistic Director Susan Simich explained, “When we decided to undertake this show, we knew we were facing a daunting yet exciting task. We faced the inevitable questions about how we could make this show appropriate for high school.”
“Our focus was always going to be the concept of unconditional love, respect for spirituality, and the celebration of what truly matters in the process of understanding how good can come out of darkness.”
“This show has been a process of teaching. Not just teaching the music or the choreography or developing characters, but the process of leading our cast to an understanding of what the hippie movement really meant,” said Prouty.
“The day we showed them images and videos of the war, you could have heard a pin drop in the room. As a group, we took in the horrors of war and the reality of how many young people lost their lives doing what they believed was their duty. They finally understood and it changed the show,” Simich said.
“Their intent in putting on this production has been to honor the remarkable freedoms we have in this country, to share the fear and loss of innocence as Vietnam ripped us out of the Camelot era, and to honor all those who fought and died as well as those who made their voices heard as a light through the chaos,” Prouty said.
“We have been changed by this process. The biggest lesson we hope this cast has learned is that hope truly does spring eternal in the human spirit and that we are all called to celebrate the power of love, truth, and spiritual connection,” Simich said.
Everyone is invited to be a part of this moment.
Show times are Thursday through Saturday, April 25 through 27 at 7 p.m. each evening, and Sunday, April 28 at 3 p.m. at the Whitewater High School Theater, 100 Wildcat Way off Ga. Highway 85 south of Fayetteville.
Advance tickets are $8 (students and adults), and $10 at the door. Advance tickets go on sale Monday, April 15 and can be purchased from any cast member or at the school.
