Can't stand still: "Footloose" is Western's next big musical

"I never walk when I can run, I don't believe I ever could. People try to slow me down, saying boy you really should kick back and chill but I can't stand still," Ren McCormack sings in the "Footloose" musical. 

Western Wyoming Community College's Performing Arts department also can't stand still. Despite budget cuts and layoffs, the college is continuing to put together large musical productions, including "Footloose," which opens Nov. 4.

In 2020, Western announced the college would be laying off job positions and eliminating degree programs due to state budget cuts. These eliminations included positions and degrees within the Performing Arts department. 

"It's just unfortunate that so many people got let go last year because of all these enormous budget cuts," Eric Delora, Associate Professor of Musical Theatre and Voice at Western, said. "So it's a little strange to have to try to move forward and do what we do, kind of maintain what we've always done."

The challenges include having less faculty members to put shows together and sometimes less students to be in and run shows, meaning people often have to wear multiple hats and sometimes additional people have to be brought in, Delora explained.

Despite the difficulties, the department is committed to maintaining the same level of theater that has been presented in the past.

Delora said the people who worked in the department so long raised the bar and set a standard that they don't want to go below. To accomplish that, the theater will continue to present multiple shows each semester, including one big show every year, such as "Footloose." 

"We just have to be smart about how we do that," Delora said. 

One of the ways to keep producing big musicals is to bring in outside help when necessary. For "Footloose," this meant bringing in Rebecca Mayer as the show's choreographer and Paul Yeates as the guest technical director and lighting and set designer.

Mayer worked at Western as a dance instructor and now lives in Salt Lake City, although she still serves as an adjunct professor. She came to Rock Springs to host a week of dance rehearsals when work on the show started and returned this week to help with technical rehearsals. Mayer has also helped with rehearsals long-distance through Zoom. 

Working on "Footloose" has also been mostly long-distance for Yeates, who is a professor of lighting and scenic design at Idaho State University.

Yeates also came to Rock Springs several months ago and then returned this week for tech rehearsals, but has otherwise been sending instructions and offering feedback remotely. 

"I like to come out here because I get to do these kinds of bigger musicals that we don't do in our programs," Yeates said, explaining that Idaho State's theater department doesn't currently focus on classic musicals like "Footloose," which is the fourth show that Yeates has helped Western design. 

Stephen Cramer, the assistant professor of musical theatre at Western and the director of "Footloose," praised both Mayer and Yeates for their fantastic work.

He did note, however, having people working remotely also provided some challenges, such as the technical difficulties that come with being long-distance and having to move tech rehearsals a week earlier than normal so Yeates could be present. 

"The pressure was on to get it at least ready for tech," Cramer said. Having an early tech rehearsal added to the production's main challenge, which was an already-short production time frame.

"We had to put it together quickly," Cramer admitted. He explained that after the "One Day More" concert the Performing Arts department did Sept. 11, the students only had one month to rehearse "Footloose" before their designer run.

Two weeks of that time frame were spent on music and dance rehearsals. 

Despite the challenges of having a tight time frame and working with a cast of 29 people to produce a musical with elaborate dance numbers, Cramer is excited about the show.

"I think it's come together really well," he said, adding that everyone has worked hard to make it happen, including doing extra work outside of rehearsals and taking ownership of the show. "I love their attitude. I love the energy the cast has brought to this project." 

Cramer is especially happy to share "Footloose," since it's a show he is personally attached to and has been wanting to do for a while.

He said that he and Mayer first discussed doing the show several years ago. Western was originally set to produce it last year, but the COVID-19 pandemic interfered. 

Although Western was able to do some plays during 2020, they all had either no in-person audience or a limited audience, meaning the department needed to do shows that could be livestreamed. Since "Footloose" is based on a film, copyright laws prevent it from being broadcast, so the production had to be postponed. Now that in-person shows are possible again, "Footloose" is finally coming to Western's stage. 

"It's just a fun show," Cramer said. Having played Reverend Shaw in two different productions of "Footloose" and being a fan of the 80s music from his youth featured in the show, Cramer is familiar with and attached to this story. 

Although it can feel like a "fluffy" piece with all the music and dancing, Cramer said "Footloose" is a play with a lot of heart that touches on important themes, including closure and redemption.

"It has a soul to it, you know, and I think it has something we all can learn from," Cramer said.

Sharing fun, meaningful musicals like "Footloose" is something Western's Performing Arts department has been proud to do and hopes to continue, despite whatever challenges come.

"We're still trying to do what we've always done, just with different people, and in some cases fewer people," Delora said. "We're putting on great shows, and the students are having an awesome experience, and we just encourage everybody to come and see this particular production." 

"Footloose" will have performances at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 4, 5, 6 and 12, with a public matinee at 2 p.m. Nov. 13. Tickets are $13 for adults and $8 for youth and seniors and are available online or by calling the box office at (307) 382-1721.

Audience members will be required to wear masks during the performance.