It's not very often you see high school students embracing the music of Elvis Presley, but this past weekend the Drama Cadets did just that.
For their annual spring production, the Drama Cadets, alongside director and producer Richard Olivari, presented "All Shook Up"at . This production, which was written by Joe DiPietro, is inspired by William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night and the sounds of Elvis Presley. It is a Broadway musical that spans over a 24-hour period during the summer of 1955.
Olivari, a sixth grade teacher at , celebrated his 25th year with the Plainview JFK Drama Cadets. He said he couldn't be happier with how the special performance played out.
"It went really well; very smoothly with little mishaps," he said. "I hope the cast had a good time, and got everything out of it that they put into it."
The cast began rehearsals in December and have worked with vocal directors, musical directors, choreographers, set designers and student directors up until the final show.
"They're all so dedicated, and such hardworking kids," said Olivari of this year's Drama Cadets. "They are always ready to keep going and they really never give up."
According to Olivari, the spring musical could have never succeeded so greatly without the help of parents and community members.
"The parents do a lot of helping with concessions, raffles and fundraising for our productions," he added. "Some of them also help us with when it comes to getting supplies for the show."
"All Shook Up" offered an assortment of roles, perfect for this year's group of Drama Cadets, which includes nearly 60 students. The production starred Ben Rabinowitz, Nicole Wittels, Rebecca Salmon, Kaitlyn Herman, Zach Goldberg, Ben Pagliaro and dozens of other students in grades 9 through 12 at the high school.
Saturday night's final performance ended with standing ovations from family and friends in the crowd, and many emotional moments for seniors who took the stage with the Plainview JFK Drama Cadets for the very last time.
