“Been working so hard,” Sohum Baluja energetically sings in the opening lines of “Footloose.” While the phrase is a part of the script, Sohum’s lines hold true in real life. Truly, the cast and crew of the Westmont Theatre Department worked tirelessly for months to put on their spring musical, Footloose. And their hard work showed.
Following a rebellious teenage boy, Ren, Footloose depicts a mother and son’s move from Chicago, Illinois to Bomont, Texas. The epitome of a small town, Bomont houses numerous classic characters, including the family of a preacher: Reverend Shaw, Vi, and Ariel Moore. As Ariel meets Ren, the vastly different worlds of Chicago and Bomont collide—mostly due to Bomont’s illegalization of dancing, and Ren’s love of it. The plot progresses as Ren finds out the history of dancing in Bomont, and fights to change the stubborn law against it.
From the opening number, every student onstage shone. Unsurprisingly, the energy never ceased for the duration of the performance. None other than Kaleb Ma played Ren, the Chicago transplant. I have never watched Kaleb onstage and not been impressed. As Ren, he showed off his polished dance moves, as well as his remarkable voice.
Jimmy Nguyen, playing Reverend Shaw Moore, absolutely blew me away the moment he entered for “On Any Sunday.” With a sophisticated presence like no other, Jimmy makes clear of his talent in every song and scene he acts in. Bringing the audience to tears, laughter, and in the finale, utter amazement (who knew the Reverend could do the splits!?), Jimmy had me on the edge of my seat the whole show.
Allison Jezyk plays Vi Moore, the Reverend’s wife. Allison simply has the voice of an angel. In every song she sang in, she mesmerized the audience.
Playing Ariel, the Reverend’s daughter, Charline Gervais has a voice like no other. At the moment she sang “I dream of what I need,” in the intro of “Holding Out For A Hero,” I got chills. Not only her singing dazzled the audience; her father-daughter dynamic with Jimmy was incredibly convincing. When the talented performer explained to me that it was her first time acting, I had trouble believing her.
Furthermore, Ariel has four talented friends: Rusty, Urleen, Laverne, and Wendy Jo, played respectively by Emi Gruender, Sarah Ruebenson, Kaylie Montoya, and Otra Phillips. Each of these actresses have beautiful voices, evident in the chilling song, “Somebody’s Eyes.”
Rusty, played by Emi, has not only a powerful voice, but also impeccable comedic timing. If you told me she was on the Broadway stage before Westmont, I’d wouldn’t doubt it for a second. Zachary Kessler plays Willard—Rusty’s crush and Ren’s friend. Emi and Zachary make a hilarious duo, as Zach also has an outstanding knack for humor.
Every member of Westmont’s Footloose did a superb job. I had the pleasure of seeing the show more than once, and each night, the cast, orchestra, and production team put on a show to remember. Congratulations Westmont Theatre on another extraordinary musical!
Cast Interviews!
Jimmy Nguyen (Reverend Shaw Moore):
Can you tell me about your role in Footloose? What was exciting about this character for you? What was challenging?
Portraying the charismatic yet difficult ‘Reverend Shaw Moore’ is an unforgettable experience. He is a complicated and lonely man, holding inside him so much grief. Shaw is constantly battling with the loss of his son while struggling to understand his wife and daughter. He is a wounded man who feels compelled to control everything in his life in order to shield his beloved from the dangers of the world. When I was first approaching the script, it was difficult to portray Shaw in a way that allows audiences to sympathize with him. Should he always be angry, or perhaps more sad? Should the love for his family be portrayed through every scene, or should there be a certain discomfort? There were millions of questions running through my head in order to bring this character to life. Until our wonderful director, Mr. Bengford, told me to get in touch with the disappointment and sorrow in this character, rather than anger; well it worked.
Favorite part about putting together this show?
The creative process will always be my favorite part of putting together a show. You get to discover your character, try different acting choices to find what works and what doesn’t. We get to all come together and create theatre magic. That alone fuels me with life. And lastly, the comfort while onstage is astonishing when you know that everyone onstage and offstage is rooting for you. The cast and crew of this show really made it feel like one big family, and I will cherish this unforgettable experience for the rest of my time.
Charline Gervais (Ariel Moore):
Can you tell me about your role in Footloose? What was exciting about this character for you? What was challenging?
She is a very rebellious girl who loves to have a good time, especially with men. However, we learn that she wants all of this attention because of her dad’s neglect towards her. She was never properly taken care of after the death of her brother so she looks for ways to be seen by her dad, which she eventually finds through rebellious acts. Ren and her dad are finally able to see her by the end of the show for who she really is.
I absolutely loved playing Ariel because of how sassy she is. She is basically the “it” girl that everybody loves, but I loved being the only person who truly knew about her past as I had been the one portraying her. Playing a character who has closed off her true emotions to the public is such an incredible thing because you feel like you’re the only one who truly knows her, that is of course until the end of Act 2! Knowing why she does what she does because of her past was such a fun thing to add into every moment.
The acting was quite challenging for me as I had never acted before. I was always terrified to do something or say something incorrectly, but I quickly learned that you really can’t portray a character without some failure.
What was your favorite part about putting together this show?
My favorite part about putting the show together was easily the cast and crew that I met along the way, I’ve never felt more loved in my life by a group of people. I ALSO ADORED GETTING COSTUMES! I am such a fashion girlie and having a whole new wardrobe, ESPECIALLY MY RED COWGIRL BOOTS, was crazy exciting! Lastly, I truly felt like a movie star every time I stepped on that stage, you really are living in another world and you become your character.
Anything else to add?
I found out that I had a sinus infection the day before opening night, so I had to miss our preview show. The sadness was unspeakable, but I learned so much about myself. The motivation and determination I had to get on that stage the next day surprised even me. I was not about to let 3 months of work with some of the people I love the most go to waste. I truly learned the meaning and the love that is embedded in theater, and I think that being sick throughout the shows was to teach me an incredibly important lesson about who I am and what I believe in. I have never been cared for when I was sick, and when I wasn’t, by anyone like the cast and crew cared for me. I love them all so deeply, and I would never trade this experience for anything.
Kaleb Ma (Ren McCormack):
Can you tell me about your role in Footloose? What was exciting about this character for you? What was challenging?
I got to play a role that was more real. It’s definitely hard being a lead because you’re on stage most of the time so there’s a lot of time spent at rehearsals and learning lines. I was also making sure my understudy, Logan Mendelson (Bickle) was prepared for his understudy show and if I was ever out sick. Any additional time I had was spent working on the technical aspects of the show. I was also co-paint captain, working with Logan Bliss (co-paint captain) and Holly Williams (set designer) to create a set accurate to the time period but still vibrant and full of life.
What was your favorite part about putting together this show?
This show is one of my favorites that we’ve done at Westmont because it’s fun and humorous without it being overly exaggerated. The entire company is so amazing considering so many joined the department this year.
Anything else to add?
Shout-out to Charline for having to fall in love with me on stage.