Playing from when the show begins to when the curtain comes down (and after), the pit band of ‘Footloose’ is a dedicated, skilled, and rockin’ ensemble of some of Haverford’s finest musicians. In this feature we snuck into the orchestra room after-school to get a first-hand look at their rehearsals.
The pit is usually known as a “pit orchestra”, but for ‘Footloose’ as with the past musical ‘Grease’ the orchestra name has been dropped for the term ‘band’. ‘Band’ denotes the upbeat nature of the musicale and is thus a more, a more appropriate fit.
Regardless of name though, the pit plays an integral role in the show, as accompaniment to the acting, singing, and dancing of stellar moves, and a professional touch to the overall nature of the show as the pit band is completely student-run and simply groovy.
The following pictures are exclusive shots of the pit band in action.
Being a part of the pit band is not easy task. Faced with keys not normally played in, having to sync with the cast, and different, more challenging rhythms, the pit band are up to snuff with experience and skill.
Stopping to mark music, the woodwinds of the pit band are (from left to right) Junior Aaron Mittleman on clarinet, Sophomore Liz Marino on flute, and Junior Stephen Lang on Tenor and Baritone
Saxophone.
Junior Rhys Evans is the drummer for the show laying down sick beats for the rest of the pit and cast to jam on and with.
Junior Luke Mottola is the bassist for the pit band doubling on classic string upright bass and electric.
In reference to the fall play of ‘Alice in Wonderland’, we took a look down a saxophone “hole” to find out where the sweet songs of the sax come from. Just see for yourself.
