Musical coming to North Star High School later this month

Dress rehearsals for “Down the Rabbit Hole” have been taking place at North Star High School  with public performances of the show being at 7 p.m. both May 28-29.

Students and staff at North Star High School are inviting the community to go “Down the Rabbit Hole” with them later this month.

The first musical play held under the North Star banner will take place May 27-29 and will be co-directed by teachers Sam Thomas and Jake Simpkins. A dress rehearsal for North Star students will be May 27 with a free show for local schools being May 28.

“Down the Rabbit Hole” opens to the public May 28 and will also be presented May 29. Both public presentations will be at 7 p.m.

Thomas said the play was originally written by Andrea Nikita, whom she taught with while at Western Secondary School. Western was getting ready to perform it in 2020 but then the COVID-19 pandemic hit and the play had to be cancelled.

“It’s a compilation of all of Lewis Carroll’s works in one play,” Thomas said of the English author and poet. “We never got to perform it.”

Thomas added the show will be dedicated to Stephen Scott, a teacher at North Star who passed away in July 2025.

Allison Campbell, another North Star teacher, choreographed the show. Most students have either a musical or dance number. Campbell said newcomers and all levels of dance are represented.

“They are all dancing at one point or another,” said Campbell.

Simpkins stated he has experience when it comes to theatre and musicals.

“I’ve done over 20 shows in Windsor-Essex County, both professional and amateur,” said Simpkins. “I did not expect the sheer amount of talent here at North Star.”

Thomas said they are getting excited as opening night comes closer and that students are doing better than expected, adding they “fell into their roles” in the play. Campbell added it has been something that has been a pleasure to be involved with.

“We didn’t start this until second semester,” said Thomas. “We started this in February.”

Rehearsals started as twice per week endeavors and have expanded to include lunch hours and more nights out of the week. They will be rehearsing daily as the show nears.

Simpkins added there will be numerous technical elements that the public will enjoy, such as lighting and technology with the sound also to be professionally done with cordless microphones. 

There are approximately 45 students associated with the production, with 30 on stage and 15 off-stage. Simpkins, who is a drama teacher, says his class will also get course credits for working on the play as well as hands on experience.

Other departments and classes within North Star High School are helping out as well, including the woodworking and machine shop classes, art classes, cosmetology classes among others. Simpkins called the cast and crew “a true mix,” as they range in age and abilities, from Grades 9-12 and it includes the STEPS program.

“It’s a great representation of the school community,” said Simpkins.

Tickets for the May 28-29 public evening performances are $10 each. They can be purchased at the main office during school hours or at the door the nights of the show. Families with access to School Cash online can also purchase tickets through that as well.

Musical coming to North Star High School later this month

By Ron Giofu