The Hunchback of Uintah High School

I have to say that when I heard Uintah High was going to do The Hunchback of Notre Dame for their big, grand-scale musical this year, I was less than impressed. But after seeing the show I am soooo impressed that my head might explode!  

The set, from the cathedral to the home-made proscenium to the painted floor, was gorgeous. The lighting and effects were amazing. The music was fantastic.

the amazing set, in the works
You can see the beginnings of the
checkerboard floor in the center of the stage.

I only made two costumes this year—King Louis XI, and Quasimodo. They were as far opposite each other as you can imagine: King Louis gets about one minute of stage time; Quasimodo is the star. King Louis is...the king! And Quasimodo is the hidden-away, barely-cared-for hunchback in the bell tower. Neither costume was very difficult or time-consuming for me to do; the hardest part for me—a designer and maker of formal dresses and women's wear—was to figure out how to make Quasimodo's costume look dirty and worn. (Paint. And sandpaper.) Connor (Quasimodo) was so sweet and so grateful for the little bit of work I did for him that I almost feel guilty for not having done more. The rest of the costume designers—the good ones who didn't procrastinate—started working for this show before Christmas. The costumes, as always, were beautiful.

Clopin, Esmaralda's dancing dress, Phoebus

some of the gypsies/townspeople
There were probably about 40+ of just these dresses (skirts, bodices, corsets, and accessories) made—by volunteers—for this show.

There's my King Louis and Quasimodo.
I think the church vestments, robes, etc.,
were the only ones not made locally.

But, most of all, the kids were incredible!

rehearsals

These talented and dedicated students, under the direction of their fearless leaders , rehearsed five days a week, beginning in January. They went every evening, at first from 6:00 p.m. until 9:00 p.m., and then put in even longer nights as they get closer to the show (which, at the time, didn't really make this mom very happy). They work like crazy on their show, and they remain excited and enthusiastic about it the entire time. On top of that, they keep up with their schoolwork, and each one of them sells $400 worth of tickets for the show. They are just amazing. And their hard work really paid off: The music was powerful, and the acting was great. Connor Talbot, as Quasimodo, had me in tears after his first number.

Also, they had the cutest gargoyle ever ;-)

Kaylie

THIS SHOW WAS AH-MAY-ZING!!! I can't say enough about it. So, instead, here are a couple of video clips (click on the words, not the pictures):

Heaven's Light and Hellfire

Closing Scene

These videos don't even come close to experiencing the show in the theater. I just wish more of our Salt Lake family and friends could have come to see it. It was truly great.