Hoboken High Gets Ready For Hairpsray Premiere

The auditorium at Hoboken High School—in which hundreds of parents, friends and other admirers will take place this weekend to watch —has been the home of 95 dedicated high school students for the past three months. Scattered throughout the room are blankets and pillows, food, homework and school bags. 

For the past three months, these students have spent most of their time rehearsing, singing and dancing, under the leadership of Theater Program Director Paula Ohaus.

This production of Hairspray, which opens to the public at 8 p.m. Friday night, is one of the complicated ones the high school has ever produced, Ohaus said, with more light cues and more lead roles than ever before. It’s also the first time the orchestra will be on stage during the show.

“It’s a little nerve wrecking,” Ohaus said in her characteristic Irish accent, adding “it’s an incredible show.”

If the students in the theater program are a family, than Ohaus is the matriarch that keeps them together. During a recent rehearsal, Ohaus directed the students, interrupting the performance multiple times, demanding the students’ full attention and best performance.

With 95 Hoboken High students working on the production, it’s also one of the biggest groups Ohaus has worked with. The students spend every waking hour in the high school’s auditorium and rehearse until 11 p.m. daily.

“It’s a lot on the kids,” Ohaus said.

And while the students are having a good time, the countless hours invested in rehearsals on top of schoolwork and life, does take its toll.

“It’s mentally draining,” said senior Krystin Santiago, who plays the role of Tracy Turnblad, one of the show’s leads. But, she added, “it’s worth it.”

Sophomore Imani Hightower feels the same way. “I’m exhausted,” said the cheery 15-year-old. “The final product is the motivation.”

Hightower, 15, is playing the role of Motormouth Maybelle. “My life is theater,” she said. After being in the school’s production of Aida last year Hightower won a scholarship to the Papermill Playhouse summer camp this summer.

This is also the goal of 16-year-old Angel Berrios, who will be performing his first lead role, but has been part of the theater program since 2005. Having a lead role means he needs to focus on his acting more, Berrios said, and “I get yelled at more.” (the friendly yelling, of course, is done by Ohaus).

Opening night, however exciting, is “bittersweet,” Hightower said, admitting that she is a little nervous for opening night when the public will see her as a supporting lead for the first time.

After this weekend, Hightower said, she will finally be able to sleep again and see some people she hasn’t seen for three months. But in being in the play also means making new friends.

“There are some people I’d never talk to unless they’re in the play,” she said.

The auditorium’s stage seems to be the place where clicks mingle.

“Everyone is accepted,” said Derrick Ladson, the show’s choreographer and Hoboken High School alumn. “Everyone fits in.”

Ladson, 27, said that since he graduated in 2002, the theater program has grown and has become more professional. The group is also more diverse, Ladson said, with more athletes participating. —who celebrated his 18th birthday with a cake in the auditorium earlier this week—is playing the role of Edna Turnblad, one of the leads.

For Santiago, joining the theater program marked a big change in her high school career. “I wasn’t doing what I was supposed to, I wasn’t applying to colleges,” Santiago, 17, said. Santiago said she loves performing, but initially didn’t audition for the show because of peer pressure. “I never thought I’d fall victim to it,” she said.

Santiago credited the change in her high school path to Ohaus.

“She’s an example of what we aim to be,” Santiago said, calling her “a miracle on legs.”

Before she joined the theater program, Santiago said, she was suspicious and didn’t take too much seriously. Now, after finding out how much she loves performing, she has a different outlook on life.

“Maybe life isn’t so cynical,” Santiago said, adding that being on the show has changed her attitude. “This benefits us more than people can see.”

Catch one of the four performances: Friday, March 25th - 8 p.m. Saturday, March 26th - 2 p.m. & 8 p.m. Sunday March 27th- 2 p.m.