Hutchinson High School’s spring play — “The Neverending Story” — has plenty of name recognition. Released in 1984 as a fantasy film, it earned an 83% positive rating from critics and 81% positive rating from audiences on the Rotten Tomatoes review site.
The movie, which was based on the beloved children’s novel of the same name, was later adapted into a stage musical. It made its debut Dec. 7, 2007, at the Seattle Children’s Theatre. Its East Coast premiere took place several months later on June 28, 2008, at the Imagination Stage in Bethesda, Maryland.
You’ll get a chance to find out what all the buzz is about when this magical journey of storytelling is performed this weekend by Hutchinson High School students. “The Neverending Story” opens its four-show run at 7 p.m. Thursday at HHS Auditorium. Additional shows are 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 2 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are available at the door.
Jason Olson, HHS social studies teacher and head speech coach, has always loved the fantasy genre, so it’s not surprising he’s directing. He chose this musical because he thought it would appeal to families.
“As a child of the ’80s and a fan of the song, (‘Neverending Story’), I remember the movie, ‘The Neverending Story,’ with great affection,” he said. “Now, it is quite different from the movies, since it doesn’t have quite as fancy of special effects.”
Auditions for the show were conducted in mid-February, with rehearsals beginning the last week of the month. The timeline is a bit different from last year and earlier, so the cast has been rehearsing for approximately six or seven weeks.
“This timeline has worked out fine,” Olson said, “but it has also been slightly difficult just to get all of the costumes and set figured out to go with the scope of this fantasy. Figuring out a dragon like Falkor on stage has been quite the task. We rehearse after school usually four days a week from 2:45-5 p.m.”
HHS has tackled some ambitious stage productions the last several years, including “Cinderella,” “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime,” “Catch Me If You Can” and “Sideways Stories from Wayside School.” In the process, the school is well-respected for its outstanding student theater.
“I think the reputation of HHS Theatre is completely driven by the talent of our students and the resources the school has been willing to provide us with,” Olson said. “The administration has been quite supportive and willing to invest resources in what we do. The students are enthusiastic and make my job so worth it. Some of them have become quite ambitious. When I think about the size of the set that is largely student-built it is mind-boggling.”
While the show is definitely entertaining, it also offers a message.
“One of the messages that I would like people to take away is honestly the value of theater,” Olson said. “In ‘The Neverending Story,’ the land of Fantasia is dying and may disappear altogether if people stop using their imagination. We need to encourage creativity, imagination and risk-taking in our students and encourage them to be the founders of tomorrow’s discoveries. That is the value of theater as it help students do this and explore their emotions in a supportive and safe environment.”
