Snow day

The winter weather rolled into Northern Kentucky just in time for tech week on our annual showcase. And as my students hoped against hope for a snow day, I found myself begging for the powers that be to keep us in school. Crazy, right? I mean, who doesn’t want a snow day? Well, for the first time, and certainly not the last, in my teaching career—I don't want a snow day. My meticulously planned rehearsal schedule will be shot to hell if the white stuff continues and we won’t be ready come opening night—an outcome I am just not willing to accept.

As I write these words, snow is falling outside my office window an inch deep. We’re still here, but pressure is mounting to call it quits early and head home while we have the chance. Except of course, we have rehearsal today, and everyday until we open the show. Losing even one day would be a critical hit in our present situation.

You see, the annual showcase used to be nothing more than a glorified talent show. Students signed up with an act and the teacher checked in on their progress. However, we (the school administrators and I) decided back in August that the showcase needed to be more polished and put together. We wanted to make it a part of our theatre season—not just a side project. We went looking for a theme, and I wrote a few skits. I asked the students to amp up the costumes, lights, and sound and put together a service project to accompany the whole shebang. What we didn’t do was give ourselves a longer rehearsal period or factor in the snow. Classic rookie mistake. As more and more flakes pile up in my window frame, I’m thinking the old talent show model wasn’t such a bad idea for these cruel winter months. I mean, at least then I could go back to hoping for snow days