In what has become a beloved tradition, Waltham High School seniors mounted a song-and-dance revue last Thursday and Friday evenings to the delight of fellow students, school staff and families. The Senior Revue poked good-natured fun at teachers, classmates, school policies and – naturally – Principal-in-Residence John Barnes.
Word must have leaked about the high entertainment value of the production. Friday night’s show was sold out, with a line of ticket-seekers snaking out the door. Drama teacher Jesse Bastarache, who directed the show, said the crowd was the largest she’d ever seen.
The show got off to an energetic start with a skit about a student’s heroic efforts to get to homeroom, racing in slow motion to the iconic music of “Gallipoli” against a video projection of the seemingly endless corridors of the new building (kudos to the video production team).
As he reaches homeroom, the student is greeted by the principal’s voice booming over the PA system. After rattling off announcements, the principal intones, “have a good day on purpose,” drawing laughs from the students in the audience. Apparently this is a familiar mantra at WHS – one that recurs throughout the show.
Some 180 seniors participated in the show, filling the stage with wave upon colorful wave of dancers performing to a variety of popular tunes. At times, the student performers were so numerous they filled the aisles of the auditorium for an immersive audience experience.
Between the dance numbers, student singers and instrumentalists performed solos. Standouts included a “rock battle” between guitarist Erik Jensen and drummer Emmett Epstein, a medley sung by Charlotte McCrary and Anabel Rutledge and a thrilling drum solo by Celeste Fox, Tessa Allia and Greta Bautina.
One particularly pointed skit centered on a character called Magistrate Meg, who sits in judgement on students engaged in a variety of misdeeds to which high schoolers are prone. The most serious charge: a student is charged with having a good day “on accident.” The evidence is presented. Visual evidence shows the student smiling, lounging around and giving a fist bump to another student. In his defense, all he can say is “I swear I was having a good day on purpose.”
The Senior Revue certainly delivered a good time – on purpose.
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