HMMS MUSICAL 2024
I want to start by saying thank you again for everything you all contributed to making our 2024 Spring Musical a success!
If you are looking for photos from start to finish of our Wizard of Oz Youth Edition production, it certainly was a process, but what a beautiful final product! So proud of all these students accomplished! What a talented and driven bunch! 
This was a special one!
You'll find images and videos here: PHOTOS AND VIDEOS TO SHARE AND SAVE
Good Monday Morning to Everyone -
What a busy weekend! The program is finished, the costumes (mostly) are completed, and the painting is nearly done. I (we) spent so many hours at the high school finishing things hard to believe four months of work is quickly coming to a close.
Below is the schedule for the week. Please pay close attention to pick-ups and drop-offs. Thank you!
Today, Monday, 5/6 - UNDERSTUDY RUN THROUGH (limited costuming): Friends and family of the UNDERSTUDIES are invited to this run-through. Leads will watch the show from the house. Run time is 3:45 - 5:00 PM, and release time is 5:30 PM.
Tuesday, 5/7: DRESS REHEARSAL, 3 - 6:00 PM: Pick up in front of the high school. We will begin the run-through as close to 4 as possible.
Wednesday, 5/8:
Call times - THESE ARE NOT TYPOS it's really that early! :)
6:00 AM - Glinda, Wicked Witch, Dorothy, Tots
6:30 - Ensemble with long hair
7:30 - Rest of Cast
8:00 - CREW must be present and accounted for at this time.
Attendance for all will be taken at 8:20 AM
EVERYONE, regardless of call, should report to the high school directly. Breakfast and lunch are provided on this day. We are done at the end of the school day. Please go home via bus or collect your child at 2:50 from the front of the HIGH SCHOOL.
Thursday and Friday Call times
3:15 PM(they are welcome to walk over to the high school with me) - Glinda, Wicked Witch, Dorothy, Tots
4:00 - Ensemble with long hair
5:00 - Rest of Cast
5:30 - CREW must be present and accounted for at this time.
House opens at 6:30 PM, show at 7 PM - run time is 1 hour and fifteen minutes, time to clean up, you can collect your child around 8:30/45 PM if you are not at the show.
SATURDAY call times.
11:15 AM(they are welcome to walk over to the high school with me) - Glinda, Wicked Witch, Dorothy, Tots
12:30 PM - Ensemble with long hair
1:00 PM - Rest of Cast
1:30 PM - CREW must be present and accounted for at this time.
House opens at 2:30 PM, show at 3 PM - run time is 1 hour and fifteen minutes, students should plan to be at the high school all day, and dinner is provided.
Touch-ups for makeup and hair. Doors open at 6:30 PM and final show at 7:00 PM. Strike immediately to follow. *It would be greatly appreciated if construction-savvy parents could bring your drills to help tear down the set.*
Following the strike, a cast party for CAST AND CREW (ONLY) will be at the high school until 11:45 PM.
Please plan accordingly to collect your child in front of the high school. The sign-up genius (click here to sign up still has slots available to chaperone, feed, and celebrate with the kids.
A couple important final announcements:
Good Evening -
Happy Sunday!
What a productive week and weekend we had. I hope the cast has spent time resting and reviewing their lines, songs, and dances in between. Their health is most important in these next two weeks. Exciting things are happening on set this weekend, and our rented backdrops have arrived. They will be a fun addition to transport us to Kansas and Oz. We're getting there. It's going to be a beautiful show, for sure.
First, I want to clear up the confusion that was brought to my attention. Apparently, the t-shirts that kids are wearing say 2 PM for the matinee performance. That performance is actually 3 PM. Apologies. The correct time is recognized on the ticket link, which is HERE.
Second, we are asking for a lot of help and need adult helpers for these two weeks. Michelle Scott kindly offered her services to create a signup genius for all the spots that need coverage in the coming two weeks. The signup to help is on this link SIGNUP GENIUS SIGNUPS.
This week's schedule through next Wednesday, 5/8, matinee day, is below.
Monday 4/29, 3 - 5 PM HHS Auditorium
Tuesday 4/30, 3 - 5:30 PM HHS Auditorium
Wednesday, 5/1 & Thursday, 5/2, 3 - 6 PM HHS Auditorium - 3 - 3:30 SNACK TIME/ get in costume leads as we can, run show 3:30 - 5:00/5:15 PM, clean up, notes, shout outs, costume corrections, glaring error cleanups, release at 6 PM. Collect your students at the front of the high school, please.
Friday 5/3 ALL CAST AND CREW rehearsal 3 - 5 PM, TECH ONLY 5 - 7:30 PM dinner break (bring your own), 5:30 - 7:30 running set changes, notes, corrections, timing.
Monday, 5/6 - UNDERSTUDY RUN THROUGH (limited costuming): Friends and family of the UNDERSTUDIES are invited to this run-through. Leads will watch the show from the house. Run time is 3:45 - 5:00 PM, and release time is 5:30 PM.
Tuesday, 5/7: DRESS REHEARSAL, 3 - 6:00 PM: Pick up in front of the high school. We will begin the run-through as close to 4 as possible.
Wednesday, 5/8, a Specific breakdown of timing for calls will be shared on 5/3. Call times as early as 6 AM. TBD who needs to be present. Helpers for hair and makeup, bright and early. First matinee 9:30 AM. Second matinee at 1:15 PM. NO REHEARSAL ON THIS DAY AFTER SCHOOL STUDENTS SHOULD GO HOME LIKE NORMAL END OF SCHOOL DAY, bus or ride. They should be collected from the front of the high school and/or catch their regular bus in the regular place.
A couple important final announcements: TIME SENSITIVE
Monday 4/22 - ALL CAST Hartford High School 3 - 5 PM in the auditorium
Tuesday 4/23 - ALL CAST Hartford High School 3 - 5 PM in the auditorium
Wednesday 4/24 - ALL CAST Hartford High School 3 - 5 PM in the auditorium
Thursday 4/25 - ALL CAST Hartford High School 3 - 5 PM in the auditorium
Friday 4/26 - ALL CAST and CREW (first OFFICIAL EXPECTED PRACTICE FOR CREW)
**ALL REHEARSALS are subject to run slightly late at this point.** We will try to hold them at most 10 - 15 minutes without your child's phone call or text.
Beginning Monday, 4/29, ALL CAST AND CREW are respectfully expected to attend every practice from start to finish. This may mean missing all or parts of games or meets through the weekend of production. This does not include folks who spoke to us in March when we began. We recognize those unavoidable conflicts. Missing for any reason (not excused already, either previously addressed or actual sickness) during those two weeks may mean having to forgo a scene because of adjustments we made while the person was out. Children should not excuse themselves because they aren't feeling well, to leave and be excused the nurse would need to evaluate and speak with parents. Too often we have students self-helping and going home without my or their guardians knowledge until afterward. In short, if your child is in school, they should plan to be at rehearsals.
May 3rd is the TECH rehearsal. This rehearsal will go from after school to 7:30. There will be a half-hour dinner break for the techies (please bring dinner for yourselves) from 5:00 to 5:30 PM. Pick-up will still be in front of the high school.
May 6th is the UNDERSTUDY production—FAMILY and FRIENDS of the Understudies are invited to join us. It is a fun way to celebrate the hard work of the Understudies and allow folks to cheer them on for a change. Everyone works so hard, and this way, families can watch their students in their more principal role.
If you still need to order shoes or undergarments for the production, please do so ASAP. Your child MUST have these things to be on stage. Waiting until days before the show can affect whether the order arrives on time, so plan ahead, please. Answers to questions about shoes, etc., can be found in the previous post, but if you still have questions, feel free to reach out to either Renchl@hartfordschools.net or me, chapmank@hartfordschools.net, and we will do our best to answer you quickly.
Friday's going forward are PYSCH days! Yellow shirt days, possible themes. Your child does not need to buy anything extra for a psych day. A MUNCHKIN FRIEND will be chosen randomly if your student wishes to be a part of it. There is a $15.00 limit on any psych buddy gifts they would get their Munchkin Friend the week of production. Please ask your child whether they want to participate in the psych week. It's no fun if they agree to participate, get physical gifts, and forget or leave someone else out. There is no shame if you and they choose not to be a part of this particular tradition.
Lastly, I cannot thank you enough for prioritizing this for the kids and you. There is only a musical with willing souls to put in the work and time. Thanks a million to those who have gone the extra mile, costuming with Leslie and Rose or building and painting sets with Brycen and me. Cora Winslow, you are an incredible young lady! Thank you for the time and dedication in your first solo venture as a choreographer! You ROCK!😉
Please look for a signup genius at the beginning of next week for our production week! We are getting so close! 2.5 weeks to matinee day is my Christmas 🎄 for anyone who has been a part of this before! The anticipation is so much of the fun! Hang on, it's about to get really crazy!
All the best, and (always) with a grateful heart, Kristen Chapman
WELCOME BACK FROM BREAK!
Pick-ups should be from the front of the high school starting tomorrow, April 15th, for the remaining weeks of play rehearsal.
I hope that everyone enjoyed the break, wherever and whatever you did. I worked Saturday through Thursday on the set at the high school with a group of dedicated high school helpers, my son, and his best friend. I am very thankful to Debbi and Tom Franklin for transporting lumber and gifted trees from Plainfield earlier in the week. I couldn't have accomplished as much without the help. It is all much appreciated!
Looking ahead, our daily schedule is 3 - 5 PM (plus or minus a couple minutes and specifications) at the high school auditorium. This week's schedule is below:
Monday, 4/15 3 - 5
Tuesday, 4/16 NO REHEARSAL (Early Release Day)
Wednesday, 4/17, 3 - 5:15 PM, 4 - 5:15 PM Munchkin costume parade (this is so the kids know, you as parents just need to know that if your child is a munchkin, they will held until 5:15 PM and the others non-munchkin rolls can be collected at 5 PM.
Thursday, 4/18 3 - 5 PM
Friday, 4/19 3 - 5 PM
Unless we have spoken and I know of conflicts, these rehearsals are ALL CAST going forward.
The Stage Crew does not have to be at rehearsal until April 26, after which they should plan to be present daily from 3 to 5 PM except May 3, when we will run tech and hold stage crew until 7:30 PM, with a half-hour dinner break from 5 to 5:30 PM.
The T-shirts are in and will be handed out ASAP.
Costuming - ALL CAST will need skin-colored undergarments (body suits, thin-strapped tank tops for bike shorts, whatever they are comfortable in, but they will be wearing these things under their costume, which is provided the undergarments are the responsibility of the individual student and their family. Boys in the cast should have clean white shirts to wear under their costumes, which helps soak up the sweat, etc. Questions about costuming should be directed to Leslie Rench (renchl@hartfordschools.net)
SHOES - The cast, except for Dorothy, Glinda The Wicked Witch, and Aunt Em, should purchase a pair of these shoes:
or
Glinda, Wicked Witch, Aunt Em - Character Shoe
Dorothy - You need a Jazz Shoe - we will provide the RUBY SLIPPERS
Wicked Witch - Jazz Boots
Scarecrow, Lion, TinMan, Oz—You need Jazz shoes, but hopefully, there will be boots or something appropriate for the farm.
Lastly, reiterating here, there is NO rehearsal on Tuesday this week. Please check the website daily as things can change based on need for the next two weeks.
Thanks so much, Kristen/Ms. Chapman
HMMS has made the decision to cancel ALL after school activities.
I apologize for the inconvenience.
Kristen
Good Morning -
This weekend puts us ONE month from the show! Crazy, the month of March simultaneously flew and dragged on. Looks like we have one more potential for snow this week. If we are delayed, we will still have rehearsal as planned. If we get canceled, we will NOT have rehearsal in the afternoon. If there is a cancellation of all after-school activities, that will include musical rehearsal. Stay tuned for changes to the schedule this week in case of inclement weather. Otherwise, the schedule this week is M - F 3 - 5 PM at HMMS your child should be picked up in front of the school.
Reminder: We are still looking for donations of individually wrapped candy. Since Easter was this past weekend, the Easter candy is on price break today.
Tickets will be available for purchase ONLINE by this evening, 4/1. The link will be active to share with friends and family, so stay tuned.
Thank you one and all, Kristen
I want to start by saying thank you again for everything you all contributed to making our 2024 Spring Musical a success! If you are lookin...