OCONOMOWOC — There is a unique reunion this weekend in Oconomowoc, and you're invited! Nearly 50 alumni of the high school's theater program will once again be under the spotlight.
The variety show is called "Our Turn... Again". It's a cheeky reference to the fact that these alumni have never performed under the lights at the Oconomowoc Arts Center.
"We have some people recreating the characters that they played on the auditorium stage," said Vic Passante, who was the Oconomowoc Theater Director from 1974 to 2007. "We have some music from past shows but we have 30 artists who are doing other numbers... James Taylor songs, songs from Pippin, songs from other musicals."
The idea for the reunion show started in a Facebook group. And while planning was underway, the alumni were sharing photos and videos of past theater productions at Oconomowoc High School.
One graduate in the group, Kristen Whitson, is a digital archivist. It was in graduate school that she learned how to digitize VHS tapes and the first tape she tried was a recording of a musical at OHS in 1999.
As plans moved forward for "Our Turn... Again" — and the collection of vintage photos and videos grew — Whitson realized it was time to make an online, digital archive for everyone to enjoy.
"I like to say that archives are like a love letter to the future and similarly this archive is a love letter to the OHS Theater Program," added Whitson.
She decided that premiere night would be the perfect time to reveal the online digital archive.
There will be two performances one on Friday, August 19th at 7 p.m. and on Saturday, August 20th — also at 7 p.m. Tickets are $10 and all proceeds will go toward purchasing a new audio console for the Oconomowoc Arts Center.
