Recently, the Monte Vista Drama department performed their annual spring musical Nice Work if You Can Get it. Performed from May 27-30, this theatrical production followed the story of a playboy and his conflicting love interests.

Musicals are among the hardest for the cast and production team since they incorporate not only actors, but a full band and choir members as well. Additionally, for some of the play pro students, while acting might come as second nature, singing and dancing  can prove to be a struggle.

In typical drama fashion however, members of the cast were able to adapt and make the very best of an otherwise difficult situation. One such person is Joseph Runini, who is in play pro and recently starred in the play Flowers for Algernon.

“I’m not a strong singer but we were lucky to have a kids from choir in our class to really make the musical sound good, and dancing is fun once you get the hang of it,” Rufini said.

One of the crowning elements of the musical was the live soundtrack performance, which included the best of George Gershwin. 18 band students gave their time to perform in the shadows alongside the main actors.

Saturday’s performance ended with a sad note as drama teacher Chris Connor bid farewell to his seniors after their last ever performance together. This year marked Connor’s fourth year at Monte Vista, so this was his first year in which his original freshmen graduated out of the drama program.

In a written speech, Connor reminisced about his time with his students.

“The freshmen who had to endure [me]…are now ready to don their cap and gowns and head off to new adventures…thanks for sticking it out and helping to shape our drama family, “ Conner said.