NVOT students recently returned from their long-anticipated February break. Some came back talking about their vacations from different places and countries. Others discussed how they spent the week in bed. People who were part of the play, whether in costume design or performing on the stage, spent their break in a completely different way: in school. For them, this returning school week meant it was only days before the production of Bring It On debuted. The week prior was filled with last-minute changes and run-throughs of the performance to make it perfect. This, for them, was tech week.

Tech week is the week when students put the final pieces of the show together and where last minute imperfections are fixed. It’s called this because although it has to do with the singing and the choreography, it also revolves around technological details such as lighting and sound. These responsibilities come with pressure and long hours, but without it, “the show would not be successful,” said sophomore Grace Caluri. “It’s the week that the entire cast and crew got together to rehearse, which made the show improve overall.”

The week was different for everyone involved, depending on his/her role in the production. For those with behind-the-scenes roles, like costumes, “It was stressful,” said sophomores Chloe Manenti and Daniella Diggins. Manenti added that because the week was so hectic, it was hard to find jobs to do. “For example, there were many alterations and not everyone showed up.”

Diggins, on the other hand, mentioned how “the week of the play is worse [than tech week]- but in the end, it’s fun,” in the sense that there’s more going on and more additional pressure.

For those who were in the show for the first time, they “didn’t know what to expect,” as freshman Dana Connell said. The longest they were there through the entire week was a full 12 hours. “The more the week went by, the more tired I got… [and] we get home really late.” However, Connell also talked about how it was “a great experience” for her and the rest of the cast. “Over the week, I learned how to connect with my character to make my own story, which makes the show really good.”

Because of the long hours, teachers organized certain activities to add a fun aspect to the days; for example, every day of tech week had a different “theme.” The students would then dress up accordingly, with themes including America day, spandex day, grade colors, a day wearing all black, wacky day, and neon day. “Everyone gets all dressed up, and it’s a lot of fun,” said freshman Sophie Ferrara.

In the end, all of their hard work paid off when the play was performed on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. “We’ve created something awesome and put our all into it,” Ferrara mentioned.  “The show was amazing.”