By Kathleen McAleese
Managing Editor
The preparation that goes into any Westford Academy Theatre Arts production is grueling, time consuming, and requires extreme commitment. But often times it is only the actors that receive the spotlight.
The individuals that aren’t on stage, however, put in the same effort. This year, WA is in the process of putting Les Miserables back on the stage after it’s first showing during the 2003-2004 school year. This time, Musical Director Scott Cruikshank who performed in the first production, is behind the scenes, not in them.
He started his theater career during his sophomore year of high school at WA where he was involved in a children’s theater production. The following year, Cruikshank auditioned for Les Miserables singing “Stars” and was cast as Javert, a leading antagonist in Victor Hugo’s novel, turned musical.
WATA, lead by Michael Towers then and now, has joined up with Cruikshank in recreating and bettering the production in order to piece together the classic in time for it’s first airing on November 15th.
Junior Thomas Mitsock, will be playing the role Javert in the current production and is able to benefit from Cruikshank’s experience in the role.
“Mr. Cruikshank is a great resource. He knows what parts he had trouble with and passes on the ways he overcame it,” said Mitsock.
Mentored by Cruikshank, Mitsock is trying to find his own perspective on the role of Javert and, “because he had played Javert it would only make him push me harder in my work.”
Besides being the Musical Director of the show, Cruikshank maintains a busy schedule as he doubles as a Social Studies teacher at WA. He spends anywhere from fifteen to twenty-five hours a week working on the production. However, since he only teaches juniors and seniors, Cruikshank is able to find relationships with students that he would not have gotten the opportunity to have before.
“[The show] allows me to get to know them as not only students but performers and people and we have a lot of fun,” he said.
Since it’s first production during the 2003-2004 school year, the theater department has increased in size, commitment, and all members of the cast are accomplished vocalists, compared to years past, in which, for the most part, only the leads in shows had exceptional singing abilities.
“In this show, all of them can sing, and so from the lead to the ensemble, they all have great voices. I think one thing that helps is that they have their summer program. We have kids in our show who have been working with Mr. Towers since they were ten years old,” said Cruikshank. “This will be the best thing to ever go on that stage.”
The upcoming show has almost double the budget compared to the original, and choreographer Tammy Dunsizer has added some “new and exciting movement sequences,” said Towers.
Towers finds that the distinction between the two performers lies in their creation of the role of Javert.
“Mr. Cruikshank built the role with his voice as the lens for construction whereas Thomas uses his body and his actor’s instinct to do the same. They are two very different performers but both men, again, built a very chiseled Javert,” said Towers.
The two performers both put everything they can into their roles in order to produce the most successful piece of work that they can. The members of the cast and crew build off of one another in order to make themselves the best they can be.
“Without the leadership and support [Cruikshank] provides, we would not be able to take on such a taxing show,” said Mitsock. “We owe him the world.”
