![Phoenix gets in position to initiate the beginning of an intense game. “It's coming to the end of the season here, so [our goal] is to just focus on working harder,” senior lineman Ryan Abbondanza said.](https://theblazerrhs.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/DSC_0042-1200x800.jpg)
On Friday, Nov. 7, Rock Ridge Theater Arts (RRTA) showcased “Footloose,” the first show of the year under new RRTA Director Ann Devine. The show took on a modern twist of the 1984 classic film “Footloose,” featuring senior Ryan Hart, playing Ren McCormack, who moved from Chicago to the small town of Bomont, Utah with his mother, Ethel McCormack (played by sophomore Amira Mahdi), after his father left the family.
In Act 1, McCormack makes quite an impression on the town, where he outlandishly sticks out from the rest of the Utah crowd. At Bomont High School, McCormack garners more attention through his performance “I Can’t Stand Still,” where he sings and shows off his dance moves, with the high school crowd cheering him on. He also befriends Willard Hewitt (played by sophomore Cooper Buns), who quickly becomes his comedic sidekick throughout the show.
McCormack’s excitement quickly gets stifled by the principal (played by Rock Ridge Assistant Principal Calvin Adams), leaving McCormack dumbfounded as he discovers that dancing and rock music are completely banned in Bomont, due to the tragedy of the Patowney bridge accident, a car crash that killed four teenagers after driving home from a dance – one of them being the Reverend’s son. Reverend Shaw Moore (senior Geoffrey Banks) banned dancing through a town-wide prohibition as a tribute to those who died.
An entwined love story between the Reverend’s rebellious daughter Ariel Moore (sophomore Emersyn Moskal) and McCormack meets a high-stakes mission, as Act 1 ends with McCormack getting inspired to throw a party for his senior class, leading him to ultimately change the law and fight for the town’s freedom in Act 2. This is also when the relationship between McCormack and Moore intensifies, the drama escalates, and the town clashes.
The show ends with the iconic song “Footloose” as everyone comes together and celebrates their newfound freedom at their senior dance. Music, dance, and laughter spread across the town and connect the community of Bomont – and the Rock Ridge audience – as they were invited to dance on stage during the finale.
The performance of “Footloose” does not only mark the start of RRTA’s new year, but it symbolizes the start of a new era of Rock Ridge theater. Rock Ridge drama teacher Devine, who has also helped with other Rock Ridge shows and summer programs, is the new full-time director, and her entry came with some changes to the program.
She first changed Rock Ridge Performing Arts to Rock Ridge Theater Arts, hoping to differentiate Rock Ridge theater from other performing arts such as band and choir. She also introduced a new logo of a rising phoenix, symbolizing growth, resilience, and the power of transformation. “It’s a new teacher, so that means it’s a new program,” Devine said. “It’s also been 10 years, so it was just time for a little bit of a revamp. So when I came in, we just did a full rebrand from name to look to logo to our mission statement. Everything has kind of changed.”
A change in mission statement reflects the new attitude shaping Rock Ridge Theater. “[This change helps us] get back to [producing] some really good theater [shows], focusing on having a good time, [making the experience] really student centered, and just making sure we’re all here and having a positive experience,” Devine said.
Devine’s goal of students having fun can firsthand be seen in the production of “Footloose,” with the main purpose of this show being to let the students have fun and enjoy themselves before the more serious, high-stakes productions that they intend to produce later this year. “Footloose is such a fun musical, and the music’s really well known,” Devine said. “The kids also expressed their love for dance, and this is a very dance-heavy show as well. So it was kind of finding all the things that the kids were good at, a show that the audience would enjoy and want to come and see, and most importantly, a show that would just be a lot of fun, not having to work too hard to do it.”
Moskal, who played Ariel Moore in “Footloose,” felt connected to her character and enjoyed the playful nature of the show. “I loved playing this role,” Moskal said. “She’s very similar to me in the aspect of dancing, and she does a lot of singing, which I feel very comfortable doing. But she’s a lot sassier and more flirty than I am, so it’s really fun to explore that side of myself. Footloose is [also] very different from a lot of the other shows I’ve been in [which were] very fantasy-like, but this one is very realistic, and it’s just about high school, so it was cool to be able to be in a realistic sort of setting.”
Senior Hart, who played Ren McCormack, appreciated how fun the process was leading up to the show. “ My favorite moment in the show was ‘Holding Out For A Hero’ because when they told us that we were just going to stand up there and flex, we all just started dying laughing, and then we saw it in the recording, and then it was even funnier,” Hart said.
With this show being the biggest role Hart has played, Devine’s guidance throughout the process helped unlock his hidden potential. “I love Ms. Devine because I feel like she can relate to us, and she allows everyone to have an equal opportunity,” Hart said. “I wasn’t expecting to get the lead for this, but I’m very grateful that I did, and I think Ms. Devine saw something in me that I did not see in myself.”
Moskal had similar feelings, appreciating the ease of Devine’s integration into the program. “It was really easy to get comfortable with her, and it felt like we had already worked together before, and she became close with our students fast,” Moskal said.
Yet, Devine’s support can’t just be seen on the stage but also behind the scenes. Banks, who played Reverend Shaw Moore, is also master electrician for the lighting team, special effects designer, and master carpenter. He felt that Devine being there helped ease any confusion on set. “While it is a student-driven program, there are limits that need to be placed by the adults that are in charge of it, and so her being there and working with us certainly helped us figure out what’s feasible,” Banks said. “She was there for all of the design areas to help us as we went through, and she was there to help guide and also bring back to earth some of the designs.”
Finishing the first show of the year, Devine has adapted to her new role of director and is enjoying the process. “ I’ve really learned how to manage a high school space, I’ve learned what kind of direction the kids need, and how to make something happen in this space in a really short amount of time,” Devine said. “I know the kids here really well, and their talent and their dedication to theater is just phenomenal, and the scale in which they’re able to do theater at this school is so fun. It’s fun to come to work every day and work with these kids because they enjoy it so much. If it wasn’t for these kids, these shows wouldn’t happen.”
While “Footloose” may have ended, Rock Ridge Theater Arts is already working to put on their next musical of “Hades Town,” which will take place in January. Much different from “Footloose,” “Hades Town” is expected to be a more dramatic, serious, and vocally complicated show for RRTA. Regardless, the program aims to submit its production of “Hades Town” for the Glamies awards, a recognition for high school theater programs in the county for various categories including best musical, best actor, best costume design, and more.
