Thursday night was opening night for Newsies the final theatre production at Riverdale High School in Pierrefonds.
“It is bittersweet,” said director Josie Arcobelli, who has been a part of the theatre program for twenty years.
“I think the best part for me is watching them find their passion,” said Arcobelli.
The English school will close at the end of the school year due to a forced move. The building will be handed over to the overcrowded French-language school board and students at Riverdale will have to take their talents to nearby Pierrefonds Comprehensive High School.
It is their final play, but the cast is going out singing and dancing.
“We get to really represent who we are for the last time,” said Timothy Wiesner, the student playing the main role of Jack Kelly.
Wiesner is in the 10th grade and is still on the fence about whether he will take part in theatre productions at his new school come the fall.
But, his co-star, 11th grader, Kassandra Lotuche Valentin, has some words of support for those students who will find themselves at a new school and on a new stage.
“Even though it is a different school and different people, it is always worth it to put yourself out there and take part,” said Lotuche Valentin.
Newsies runs through April 11, 12 and 13 at Riverdale High School in Pierrefonds.