RCS arts department looks ahead to next performance season

While most people are making plans for their summer vacations and relaxation, two Russellville City Schools teachers have already been looking ahead to the fall and even next spring.

“We have our season ready to go at every grade level,” explained RCS music director Emily Rush. She and theatre director Patrice have laid out their performance schedule and planned a full slate of shows for the 2019-2020 school year.

The middle school will kick off the season Oct. 24 with “A Very Hippie Spooktacular.” “We have a Woodstock medley and Hair medley and some of that kind of thing,” Rush said.

The curtain will next open on the middle school Christmas program Dec. 12.

In February the high school performing art students will bring “Frozen Jr.” to the stage, Feb. 6-7.

“We had to get special permission to do it. It was just released in the spring, so it’s a fairly new commodity,” Rush said. “We’re really excited about that.”

For the seventh- and eighth-grade musical, a whole new world will come to the stage with their performance of “Aladdin Jr.” March 26-27. Rounding out the Disney-charged season will be the sixth-graders with “Sleeping Beauty” April 28.

“We have the largest amount of students we have ever had in our program,” Rush said.

As the school year winds down, the RCS program will once again host the Youth Choir Camp May 4-5 – “It went over very well this year, and I think they are going to get just as excited next year because we’re doing a Country Spring Sing” May 7, Rush said. The year will wrap up May 19 with Summer Slam 12: Good Vibrations, featuring a beach theme. “That seems like a really fun way to end the school year to me.”

All shows will start at 7 p.m., except for Frozen, which will be at 6:30 p.m.

Smith and Rush announced the themes to the students this week. “The kids are going to be excited when they find everything out,” Rush said.