This year, the theater program is putting on The Little Mermaid here at WCHS! The casting could not have been more perfect for this production. Claire Adkins will portray the Little Mermaid (Ariel), and Harper Brady will portray Ursula.
Claire Adkins is a sophomore here at WCHS and plays Ariel. She has been a part of 11 plays/musicals throughout her life. “ …I was in choir at the time and all my friends auditioned, but after that show ( Beauty and the Beast Jr. ) I started doing stuff at Woodford Theater and I just fell in love with it” says Adkins. She originally auditioned for the role of the chef, but then at the last minute decided to try out for the role of Ariel. “I really liked the song ( part of your world ), but as I was practicing, I realized that I did really want the role of Ariel.” But being the lead of a well-known show can be stressful. Claire expressed that “Sometimes I feel the pressure of having to sing the song perfectly or make sure I know all the words by the time we are supposed to be off book. “
Claire also has a condition called tourette’s syndrome. She is the youth ambassador for the National Association of Tourettes, and she has many resources to spread awareness and encourage others who have this condition not to be afraid to reach for their goals. “ In theater, it’s the best environment to be in in general, because everybody is so accepting and supportive, but on stage, since I have everything memorized I don’t really have ticks at all or they would be small facial tics which is nice. “
Harper Brady is a Junior here at WCHS and plays Ursula. She has been a part of 21 plays/musicals and first started when she was in the 3rd grade production of the Nightingale. “I realized during rehearsals that this is something that I would love to do.” Her favorite character that she has gotten to play is Josephine in Big Fish. “ Playing Josephine was so fun, especially with this cast. I really loved the musical Big Fish growing up, so being able to be a part of it was really cool “. Brady originally auditioned for Scuttle but ended up as this year’s Ursula. “ I was planning on auditioning for Scuttle, and then I heard Mr. Strickland say ‘ last call for Ursula ‘ and thought that would be a fun role to portray!” Brady said that the first time she got the script she was really excited and got right into putting all her lines into a quizlet. “ Memorizing lines is hard, but once you get the hang of your character’s personality, it kind of comes naturally. “ Brady is so excited to play ursula and the way she prepares is very inspirational. “ Once I’m up on stage, I kind of get into this mindset of ‘I’m playing this character, it’s not me‘ and I ask myself ‘Would ursula get nervous?’
If you want to go see Claire and Harper perform along with so many other talented students, you can go see the show Thursday, March 27th at 7:00 pm through Saturday, March 29th, at 2:00 pm and 7:00 pm at the WCHS Auditorium! Hope to see you there!
