GHS students ready for 'Bye Bye Birdie'

A flurry of energy will be seen on the Gering High School auditorium stage April 21-23 as musical students throwback to the “Golden Age” in their production of “Bye Bye Birdie.”

A comedy that has delighted many audiences since first being performed in 1960, “Bye Bye Birdie” has continued to find laughter even from today’s youth. GHS junior Maddux Janecek, who plays Mr. MacAfee in the show, said the musical is something for the whole family.

“It’s just a fun experience for the family to come watch, and I like to think we’re a charismatic group of kids,” he said.

Junior Hannah Boyd, who plays Rose Alvarez, agreed, “(It’s) great entertainment, and it’s family friendly.

The show has been four months in the making, and director Shelly Muggli, along with the cast and crew, are liking how it’s coming along.

“We practice four months before they even get anything (performances), and so it takes a lot of self-motivation,” Muggli said. “It takes … seeing the end picture’s coming, and so it’s a lot of work to do when the reward doesn’t seem like it’s tangible and within grasp until the last week of the show.”

“I think it’s coming along well,” Boyd said. “I think we’re going to be ready by opening.”

The students said that compared to the past, this year’s production required a lot more collaboration, as it has a lot more main characters than last year’s “Wizard of Oz.”

“Last year was a lot more just four main leads out there by themselves a lot of the time,” Janecek said. “This year, it’s a lot more teamwork between the cast.”

Junior Emily Coakley, who plays Kim MacAfee, said, “We have a lot of collaboration everywhere.”

That collaborative energy has encouraged a lot of the younger high schoolers in the process of putting the production together. Muggli said she had way more younger students than usual.

“We’ve got a lot of kids who are new to musical, lots of young kids, which is good,” she said. “…I think it’s just been kind of fun to see that excitement and just what the theater does, because they all, now at the end, when they don’t have to be (on stage), they like to come in and cheer people on. It’s fun to see that and to see them all together.”

With rehearsals being four days a week, the show has required a lot from the students, but it’s all worth it in the end when they get to perform for the entire community.

“Just being in the audience, it’ll be very fun to watch and we’ve a lot of (energy),” Coakley said.

Muggli said, “It’s been a great experience and another great show. It’s funny; the kids have loved it. I think it’s just going to be a blast.”

“Bye Bye Birdie” will take place April 21-23 at 7 p.m. each night. Tickets are $10 per person and can be purchased at geringschools.net.

*This article originally appeared in the Gering Courier on April 20, 2022.

See more photos >>>