Grand Ledge High School [GLHS] is set to perform the musical Footloose, which will be performed on Nov. 21, 2025 to Nov. 23, 2025 in the high school auditorium. Footloose tells a story about Ren, a young man from Chicago, Illinois, who moves to a small town in Bomont, Utah, where dancing is prohibited. Ren fights to mend the town’s separation and reinforces the power of dance. Cast members have mentioned that this performance includes a large amounts of dancing, causing the show to be fun. Lillian Robertson, a GLHS senior playing the role of Dusty, shares her enthusiasm for the upcoming show.
“This is a big dancing show, so there’s a lot of dancing. I love all the people in the show; this is a really good cast we have,”Robertson said.
Students and members of the musical are excited to see how this performance will unfold. Cast members have stated that Footloose has immense amounts of dancing and performing, which opens opportunities for more students to be included in the show. Members of the musical are looking forward to singing and dancing for the audience. Natalia Carpenter, a dancer and junior at GLHS, is looking forward to many aspects of the upcoming fall performance.
“I’m excited for the ending scene where there’s a big dance, and I’m excited to see my costumes,” Carpenter stated.
With tickets selling out rapidly, the cast is still getting ready to perform their best and still needs an abundant amount of practice, which will take place until the first show. Musical practices take place after school, and usually run until six P.M. Once the musical draws even closer, performers are required to rehearse on Saturday’s as well, from eight A.M to six P.M. While having so much time taking up one’s day, it may be exhausting to manage school and rehearsals at the same time.
“Coming near the show, the practices run later throughout the day, so when you get home, depending on where you live, you don’t have a lot of time to do your homework or study for a test. That pushes back your sleep schedule,” Carpenter said.
Having late practices can also affect the ability to do extracurricular activities that cast members are involved in. Lead roles might not have the ability to study as much as their peers, but they’re willing to take that risk because of their love of performing. Individuals interested in doing multiple activities may have a harder time focusing on multiple things, but if they put in the work, it can be possible. Xander Lieb, a GLHS senior playing the lead role of Ren, describes how it can be a challenge, but also worth it.
“I’m on the lacrosse team, I’m in Advanced Placement [AP] Psychology and AP Statistics. Balancing that with the workload can be difficult sometimes, but once you figure it out, it’s a blast. Last year, I was in AP Literature and there was a whole bunch of reading and I never had time to read because I had to pay attention to what’s on stage,” Lieb stated.
Having one main extracurricular activity can take the time away from doing other things that students enjoy. Many members of the musical had to skip sports practice, jobs, and more because of the musical.
“I definitely have to take a lot of time off work, so that means I have to cut back on time, like going out with friends or going out to eat,” Robertson said.
Long practices can be unfortunate for lead roles, but can have major benefits for smaller roles. Students who aren’t practicing a scene that other individuals are a part of are allowed to do homework during this time. This can be helpful to students who aren’t able to get work done when they get home from practice.
“Since I’m a dancer, I don’t have a big role like the main characters do, so I definitely have more time to do homework during practice. Once, I worked on an entire essay during practice because I wasn’t needed in one of the scenes we were doing,” Carpenter stated.
Cast members have described that it’s easier to maintain extracurricular activities with school when they stay organized, prioritize staying off social media, and do homework with every chance they get, even if it includes during free time or during practice. Students who are feeling weighed down by schoolwork may find it more useful to use these strategies to help keep school and other outside curriculum’s balanced.
“Use a lot of time management, I understand if you procrastinate, but you really can’t, especially if you’re someone in AP and higher classes, you can not procrastinate or you will get behind, and getting caught up stinks, it’s the worst thing ever,” Lieb said.
