After months of suspense, the Spring Musical has finally been revealed!
Posts on the Taft Drama Instagram page teasing for the title began back in May of 2024. As the month progressed, the possibilities of the musical dropped from nearly 50, all the way down to five. The final five musicals were “Beauty and the Beast,” “Cinderella,” “Finding Neverland,” “The Little Mermaid,” and “Into the Woods.” Finally, the wait is over.
The musical will be staged in the Auditorium April 24-26. Auditions will be Jan. 22-23 in the choir room (VC 173). These auditions are open to all Taft students.
“Competitive casting,” said senior Rosalia Locascio when asked about how the auditions will be. She has been participating in Taft Performing Arts since her freshman year.
Additionally, leading up to auditions, there will be a dance workshop on Jan. 15 in the Dance Studio (VC 119). It is highly recommended that people who are interested in participating in the musical should attend these workshops.
This musical differs from other musicals the Taft Performing Arts has had, bringing an atmosphere that’s, “Family friendly compared to the scandalous musicals,” said Locascio.
“There’s going to be a lot of puppeteering… I don’t recall Taft doing a lot of puppeteering, or incorporating that into their shows, so this will be something almost entirely new to everybody in this cast,” Locascio added.
There’s a lot of planning that has been going on to make this musical the best it can be. As described by Locascio, the actors and actresses, “Will have wigs and colored hair and the makeup will go crazy, people will be stained of color for weeks.”
That being said, the reveal is here! The 2025 spring musical is… Disney’s “The Little Mermaid!”
“The Little Mermaid” production will be based on the 1989 Disney animated film. Originally published in 1837 as part of a collection of fairy tales for children, the story follows the journey of a young mermaid princess who is willing to give up her life in the sea as a mermaid to gain a human soul.
Locascio reflected on past musicals, “I’m also really hopeful that there’s going to be a lot of dancing… in previous years, there was dancing, but it was very, I would say, basic step-dancing, as opposed to more complex or advanced choreography.”
She added, “I really hope they up the ante on the dancing, I think it would take the show to a whole new level, I think it’d be great, I think it’d be fun.”
Senior Alyssa Barrow offered advice to newcomers, “If you come for auditions, don’t come just to play a role, come to do the work backstage with a healthy community.”
Barrow followed up by saying, “As one of my favorite drama influencers always says here, you’re always auditioning!”
Both Barrow and Locascio strongly endorse this musical, Locasico saying, “If you’re into singing and fish, bring yourself, and bring your children… I’m pretty sure every child has seen this movie, so every child should come and watch it because it will be fun. There’s going to be a lot of interacting, there’s definitely going to be a live band playing… It’s going to be very interactive.”
All being said, come see “The Little Mermaid” later this year!
