by John Dowd
With the holidays moving through the Bitterroot, Hamilton High School has been preparing something special. Since September, the Hamilton High School drama department has been preparing to perform Irving Berlin’s “White Christmas,” a musical based on the 1954 movie of the same name.
The play will be directed by Dana Hamilton, a drama and stagecraft teacher at Hamilton High School and Middle School. Dana has been directing shows in high schools for 16 years, and has been at Hamilton for two years.
“I did theater in high school and absolutely loved it and I wanted to help foster the arts and the love of theater in kids,” said Dana. She loves to talk to students about careers in theater and what they can accomplish with a love for drama.
The school’s interpretation of “White Christmas” will be showing in the Performing Arts Center at Hamilton High School on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, November 30 through December 2, at 7:30 p.m. There will also be a special showing on Dec. 2 at 2 p.m., strictly for veterans and their families. Admission for the regular shows will be $10 for adults and $5 for students and senior citizens. For the special veteran showing, admission will be free to all veterans and a flat rate of $20 for the rest of their families.
Dana explained that the school is holding the special showing because there is a strong veteran element in the show and they wanted to do something to honor veterans for their service. The plot of “White Christmas” involves two WWII U.S. Army veterans turned stage artists after performing for the troops overseas. The story then jumps 10 years into the future, where both are successful performers and meet two sisters, also in the entertainment business. The four then work to do a performance to help out the men’s former commanding officer. According to Dana, the play is a love story, comedy and a feel-good performance the whole family can enjoy.
Dana said that the school drama team wanted to do a holiday performance this year, and that it has gone so well that they plan to continue doing so every other year. The production started in early September, and any student in the school could try out. “White Christmas” will employ 45 students in various roles from acting, to set design, to lighting and much more. Dana also said the crew will include a mixed variety of the student body, with some athletes, the choir and drama students all participating.
“They are so excited. They have been working so hard for this,” said Dana. One of the performers, Joshua Canavan, will be playing one of the lead roles, that of Captain Bob Wallace. The role was played by Bing Crosby in the film.
Canavan said his favorite scene, after admitting that there are so many that he loves, may be one where he performs the number “Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep.” Canavan said the song proposes that if a person does as the title suggests, they will sleep better. A senior this year, Canavan hopes to go on to theater in college and then as a career. His first exposure to the craft has been with Dana Hamilton’s classes, and he said that he has fallen in love with acting. “It’s become one of my biggest passions,” said Canavan.
Canavan said that he is extremely excited for the performance, saying, “we have a big ensemble,” and a lot of students are working hard on the play. He believes it will turn out to be something truly special. “It’s a really great production, I think people are really going to like it,” added Canavan.
The school’s next performance will be in the spring and Dana said they hope to pull off a performance of “The Diary of Anne Frank,” in March. Canavan hopes to be in that production as well, as it will be his last school performance before graduation. For more information about this performance, or others, interested parties can contact Hamilton High School by calling the front desk at (406) 375-6060 or by emailing Dana at hamiltond@hsd3.org.