The crowds pooled into the auditorium, causing the cast and to whisper amongst one another. They recalled how much time they spent perfecting the show. All that was left to do was perform.

Musical theatre students put on their first Musical Theatre Showcase Friday night in the auditorium. Musical theatre teacher Celeste Schneider directed the show with help from students in musical theater class.

“This is a show where groups are performing different songs from different musicals,” Schneider said. “The groups get to choose their own songs and choreograph those songs. They pretty much get to do everything by themselves.”

Students said that Friday’s show had a great turnout. Performers brought their best efforts and faced a large audience. Some students agree that having a great crowd was encouraging, especially for their first show.

“Honestly, I was mostly looking forward to the audience’s reaction to everything,” junior Kylie Defenthaler said. “I definitely think this was a fun show and I think the audiences really enjoyed it.”

The showcase included group performances as well as solos from individual students. The showcase included an array of songs from Broadway shows including “Mean Girls”, “Beauty and the Beast” and many more. Diefenthaler had to audition to be able to perform as a soloist.

“I did a song called ‘A Change in Me’ from ‘Beauty and the Beast’”, Diefenthaler said. “We also closed the show with ‘The seasons of Love’ from ‘Rent’, and I got a solo in that as well.”

Some students that performed were ones who haven’t gotten to be highlighted in some of the shows, and the showcase was a way for them to get a chance to stand out.

“I was in a couple of dance ensembles which I found really exciting,” sophomore Meagan Henry said. “I chose to take musical theater because I really like theater and I thought being in this show would be a cool way to improve my acting and dancing skills.”

As of this year, musical theater is an official class at VHS. Last year, Schneider worked with administrators to offer the class since other LISD schools offered it.

“I love musical theater so much, and everyone that’s in musical theater – they’re nerds just like I am and love it as much as I do,” Schneider said. “It’s really fun having so many people in one room every other day that have a love for musical theater. It’s my favorite thing!”