Super Saturday is to Spring Sing as a rehearsal is to a wedding. It is the last practice on the Benson stage before live audience members and judges fill the seats. It is the last time you have as a member and as a director to make sure that your show’s choreography is crisp, that you are enunciating each word you sing, and that the costumes and props have each final detail intact. With so much to do in so little time, Super Saturday can seem daunting, but fear not. Here are some tips from Spring Sing veterans to help each show member flourish.
“I know it relates to the movie, “Friday Night Lights” but I like to think of Spring Sing as our very own Thursday, Friday and Saturday night lights,” junior second-time large part member, Dallas Hermann said. “You should envision the Thursday, Friday and Saturday night lights that you are working towards to perform under during each rehearsal on Super Saturday.”
Hermann also said that it is very important to stay hydrated and save your voice while maintaining the enthusiasm you need during rehearsals. Hermann has a special trick that he said he uses before he leaves his dorm for Super Saturday that helps him set the tone for the day’s activities.
“Look at yourself in the mirror and give a big ol’ smile,” Hermann said.
According to Hermann, starting your day like that makes it easy to have a good attitude when you feel yourself beginning to get tired.
“From a director’s standpoint, it is very important that you are energetic, because if you’re tired, then they are tired, so you have to give them a reason to be excited,” second-time director senior Harlee Stutesman said.
Stutesman also advised directors to book their practice venues in advance. Super Saturday is set up so that each show is filtered through the Benson stage in the order they will perform on opening night. There will be one rehearsal on stage to perfect lighting and staging, and two separate rehearsals will be held elsewhere that day at the director’s discretion. It gets complicated when every show is trying to book places in Searcy to have their practice so it is better to have it booked in advance, according to Stutesman.
“It is important to work at whatever you are doing on Super Saturday like you are working for the Lord,” fourth-time large part member senior Riley Sneed said.
Each Spring Sing show is linked to a specific charity and depending on the rankings, the charity gets different sums of money. Sneed said that it is easy to see that the purpose behind Spring Sing is for God’s glory.
You are guaranteed to thrive on Super Saturday if you keep those key pieces of advice in mind. Drink water, conserve your voice, be energetic and work at it as if you are working for the Lord.
