Centertown students to perform holiday play

Penguin Sierra Pedigo tries to get Santa Claus to remember who he is during a rehearsal for the play ?How the Penguins Saved Christmas.? Centertown students are performing the musical at the school Thursday at 7 p.m. Santa is played by Dakota Myers.

Unfortunately, Santa didn?t learn his lesson when he was a kid and his tomfoolery almost costs the children of the world their Christmas.

That?s the premise of the musical ?How the Penguins Saved Christmas,? which will be performed by students in the Centertown Theater Club tomorrow night.

?As the story goes, Santa is flying over the South Pole when he starts showing off and falls out of his sleigh,? said Centertown guidance counselor and play director Dr. Lynn England. ?Santa hits his head and he doesn?t remember who he is. The penguins help him get his memory back and by doing so they save Christmas.?

The play features a cast of 19 students, most of them penguins, who sing and dance their way around the set. The students have been rehearsing the play about five weeks.

?We have auditions and this basically runs like any other theater production,? said England, who has a degree in music education.

This is the third play for the Theater Club which is coming off a highly touted performance of ?Annie? that took place during the Centertown Fall Festival. On Monday, students went through their technical dress rehearsal, which is a good indication of what needs to be fine tuned before the show. The technical dress rehearsal features sound, music and costume changes.

?The kids know the show and I?m expecting a great performance,? said England.

?How the Penguins Saved Christmas? is a free show that?s open to the public. It starts at 7 p.m. Thursday night at Centertown School.