If you’re a Westridge student, then you understand the difficulties of tackling heated English discussions, vigorous note-taking during lectures, intense meetings with teachers, and a quiz all—in one day. Like the rest of her peers, senior Alice C. takes on the role of student by day; but by night, she assumes the lead role in Westridge Theatre’s upcoming musical, Newsies. 

In addition to a long school day and the hours of homework to come, Alice must learn to play a man on stage and speak in a Brooklyn accent as Jack Kelly, the protagonist of Newsies.

Despite the incredible demand of this role, Alice is thoroughly enjoying her time in theater.

As Alice’s days become busier as opening night approaches, she shares what a typical day in her life looks like. 

8:40 Alice’s morning through afternoon looks like any other Westridge senior, where she has classes such as AP Calculus AB or Modern Middle East and maybe an off-campus lunch with her friends. 

3:10 As soon as school’s out, Alice rushes to the Black Box Theatre where she changes into her rehearsal outfit and attaches a microphone. “When I get into my mic it takes a couple minutes, so I always do it with a partner,” said Alice. 

Next, Alice will warm up her voice and body to prepare for the  numerous dance numbers—and even a fight scene—in the production. Once Alice chats with friends, prepares her voice for hours of singing, and stretches, she is almost ready to take on the role of Jack. 

3:30 Now, Alice will partake in “mic check” with the rest of the cast. “Mic check is where they make sure all the mics and things are functioning and they’re at the right [volume] levels, so you have to stay on stage and sing a little bit or say some lines for about 30 minutes,” Alice said about the tedious process. 

4:15 Despite 50 minutes of prep work, Alice still has more to do as she heads into group vocal exercises. 

Typically, Alice and the rest of the cast will perform exercises such as the well known “Peter Piper” tongue twister—but with a twist. “[Ada N. ’24] and I created a longer version [of the tongue twister] about the forgotten Penny Piper who pickles the peppers, so it’s much longer and many people still don’t have the hang of it,” Alice said. 

4:30 A unique aspect of Newsies is the fight scenes, which mean even more prep time for Alice’s acting regimen. “We have to do our fight call, which is basically when a couple members of each team will run through the fight scene multiple times at different speeds to make sure everyone stays safe,” Alice explained. 

5:00 By this time, or sometimes earlier, the senior you once knew is now newsboy Jack Kelly. Typically, the production team and cast will run through small scenes of the show, working their way up to larger chunks. 

Some cast members have downtime to watch their fellow actors perform a scene, review their scripts, or grab a drink of water. However, as the main actor in the musical, Alice rarely gets the privilege of taking a break. 

For instance, Alice acts out back-to-back scenes such as Jack Kelly leading a protest, a scene that demands a lengthy speech and is immediately followed by a detailed dance number and fight scene. Then, to top it off, Alice performs a reprise of the song “Santa Fe.”

Reminiscing on her singing in past roles, Alice said, “When I was in SpongeBob there was a lot less singing. I’ve been kind of losing my voice lately, and also there is a lot more yelling in this show. It’s a very angry and angsty teen show.” 

7:00 While most students have left school by this time, Alice and the company are still wrapping up their four hour long rehearsal by taking off their newsboy caps, messenger bags, and mics; and finally, heading home. 

Overall, participating in the production of Newsies has been an exhilarating—albeit exhausting—experience for Alice. She concluded, “It’s really crazy and definitely a lot more work—but it is the most fun I’ve ever had.”  

Ever wondered what the lead in a musical keeps on hand? Here is what is in Alice’s bag:

Watch Alice and the cast in Newsies on March 14, 15, and 16!