The St.Thomas Aquinas High School Theatre Department has officially announced its productions for the upcoming school year, revealing the beloved musical Seussical and the classic play Alice in Wonderland. The announcement has already sparked excitement among students and theater fans across campus as they look ahead to another creative and entertaining season at STA.
According to Theater Director Elizabeth Garrard, selecting the productions each year is a careful and intentional process designed to benefit students both artistically and academically.“There’s quite a process involved in choosing the shows, and it’s not an arbitrary decision,” Garrard explained. “We have to look at the content and what we feel is going to best serve our student performers, our student designers, as well as uphold the values of the Catholic faith and STA.”
Garrard shared that she also likes to choose productions connected to literature and stories students may already recognize from childhood. Both Alice in Wonderland and Seussical allow students to revisit familiar stories while discovering deeper themes and meanings within them. “These two titles seemed appropriate because they are titles that we are all exposed to as children,” Garrard said. “Now we can apply all of the new knowledge and information that we’ve gained as students and take a deeper look at the importance of literature in our lives.”
Alice in Wonderland, based on the famous story by Lewis Carroll, follows Alice as she enters a strange and imaginative world full of unforgettable characters and unexpected adventures. Seussical, inspired by the works of Dr. Seuss, combines Seuss stories into one colorful musical centered around imagination, friendship, and believing in yourself.
Garrard also described the upcoming productions as visually exciting and creatively ambitious. “I think these titles are going to be very colorful, very imaginative,” she said. “Audiences can expect a lot of innovation.” She explained that students involved in the productions will have opportunities to explore the historical inspiration and hidden meanings behind many of the characters. Beyond the performances themselves, Garrard hopes the productions remind audiences of the timeless lessons found in children’s literature. “A lot of times we forget some of those important core values and lessons that we learned when we were children.” Although the productions are still months away, the announcements have created anticipation for what promises to be another memorable year for STA Theatre.
