By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
Although the doors to the Hays Community Theatre have been shuttered for almost nine months, the HCT team was able to come together for a special performance that will be broadcast on YouTube this week.
Hays resident and community theater founder Cheryl Glassman's daughter Sarah's theater company, HiGlass Productions, is compiling a holiday variety show that will be broadcast virtually at 6:30 p.m. (CST) Thursday, Dec. 17. You can find a link on HiGlass' website www.higlassproductions.com or on its Facebook page.
HiGlass' Christmas show is usually performed live in New York, but that was not possible this year because of COVID.
Sarah, 38, is a Thomas More Prep-Marian graduate and has lived in New York for 15 years, working in theater.
All 20 acts were prerecorded for the show titled "We Need a Little Christmas," including HCT's piece, which was shot last week.
The HCT's 10-member cast sang "Put a Little Love in Your Heart," which was on the soundtrack for the movie "Scrooged" starring Bill Murray.
In addition to the HCT piece, Brenda Meder, Hays Arts Council director, will be reading a Christmas story for the production.
HCT members helped with costumes and props.
"Everybody kind of chipped in and helped out as they could," Glassman said. ... "Everybody pulled together to do something."
The cast ranged in age from 13 to 75 with singers from all walks of life, including a nurse, chaplain, students, business people and a construction worker.
"What is important to me is that people from all walks of life can come together to do something like that. We're all just sitting there putting it together," Glassman said. "It was fun to work with them. It doesn't matter where you come from when it comes to something like this."
HCT was able to present its annual Halloween walk, which was outside, but has not been able to mount any other performances because of concerns over the spread of COVID-19.
"I think the most important thing is not just the actors, but the people in the community need something to uplift them during this time," Glassman said, "because it is just a difficult situation for everyone"
She said the show also gave participants a little lift during the Christmas season.
"As we continued to rehearse, everyone just became more positive," Glassman said. "I could just sense it."
The show was featured in Broadway World, a trade publication published in New York. When the cast heard that news, they cheered, Glassman said.
"I think people will really enjoy the things they put into it and all of the different characters and all of the different people that are going to be part of it," Glassman said of the show. "This will give people a few minutes to sit back and watch something that is there to help us to feel better about things right now."