Carpe Diem, An Original Musical, Opens Jan. 13

The characters in the original musical Carpe Diem complain that they spend their lives doing nothing. To combat this, they come up with a brilliantly flawed idea to rob a bank where everything begins to go terribly wrong.

The show is an original musical by Andy Southern, writer; Casey Reed, composer; Allie Bowers, choreographer; and Vada Briceno, stage manager. They formed the production group Theatricity. All are Grayslake High School students, and all of the cast members in the show are also students at Grayslake North or Grayslake Central High School.

Carpe Diem is free and open to the public and will be shown in the Black Box theatre at Grayslake North High School at 4 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Jan. 13 and at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 14.

"I came up with the concept for the show in a dream," said Southern. "It all started about six months ago. It is exciting to see it come to life."

Reed wrote 14 original songs for the show.

"I have never done anything like this before," he said. "The best part for me has been watching the songs that were all in my head come to life."

Bowers who choreographed eight dances said she has been impressed with the talent of all the cast members. 

"It was great to see them make this vision become a reality," she said. "We were all a huge part of the creative process."

She said they have become attached to the show. They held auditions and 33 teens auditioned for spots. Of those, 16 were cast and another 12 are involved with the crew.

"Everyone has worked so hard," Bowers said. "I think I'll be gleaming with pride to see the show in front of an audience." 

Reed agreed, adding, "The level of professionalism throughout this show is something that people may not be expecting."

Keeping the show running smoothly falls to Briceno, stage manager. "I have to make sure everyone stays on task," she said. "That can be hard when they are your friends, kids your own age."

They managed to put a full musical together in eight rehearsals.

"Once we started blocking everything, I could see that it was really going to happen," Southern said.

Actor Jack Lettenmair, a senior at Grayslake Central, said Andy and Casey were great directors. "They both have so much knowledge of theatre. They know what to do, but are also easy to work with," he said.

"It is a really good show," Lettenmair said. "The emotional progression of each character is great to watch."

Actor Gianni Carvajal, a freshman at Grayslake Central, said this is his first experience in a musical. "I think it is awesome to be part of an original cast. Everything flows together really well. It has drama and comedy, both of the genres put together."

For more information, go to theatricity.blogspot.com.