Written By: Helena Pierry

Every year, Rye Country Day produces a winter musical, providing an opportunity for friends to gather and watch their classmates showcase their talents. This year, the chosen musical is Les Misérables. Taking place in 19th century France, Les Misérables is a musical that follows Jean Valjean’s life after being released from 19 years in prison. Valjean goes on a journey to turn his life around, creating an inspiring story about second chances and the ability for people to change. Viñas, the director of this musical and the Upper School Drama Teacher, believes that “dramatic, empowering, and hard-hitting” are the best words to describe this production.

Viñas has described the process of directing the musical so far as interesting. She mentioned that the book Les Misérables was her “abuelo’s” favorite, so she is “reentering it and trying to understand why he loved it and what is so great about it.” She also says that the musical “has some really interesting themes in regards to the system that we live in.” She is especially excited to work on this musical, as it is very famous, guaranteeing that many people will be familiar with the songs. She says that it is going to be “an exciting challenge to work on something so iconic.”

While directing this musical, Viñas discovered some challenges. Her biggest struggle is that it is a sung-through musical, meaning that there are no scenes that are spoken; it is all singing. She says that the challenging part about that is “juggling musical rehearsals for people who don’t know the music and adding movement, dance, and acting while students are still learning the music.” The understudy of Cosette and Little Cosette, Mira Browning ‘29, agrees that the hardest part of the musical are “the songs, since it is a vocally demanding show.” 

While describing the process of directing, Viñas called it complicated because they only have seven weeks to produce the show. Despite this challenge, she emphasizes that RCDS “has some really talented students in the music program.” These students are able to learn really quickly, which helps the musical come together in such a short amount of time. While directing, Viñas especially enjoys watching the students who are new to musicals, as she has “fun watching them learn and get excited about these characters that have really complicated relationships and social dynamics.” 

Rehearsals begin with the students doing a full read through of the first act. They read the lyrics aloud as if they were lines. The students then go to Ms. Marcell, the Upper School Music Teacher, to learn the music. Once the music is learned, the students will then learn the choreography with a hired choreographer, Christian Galivis, and a student choreographer, Josie Choi ‘26. While the rehearsal process can be difficult, it is also Browning’s favorite part of being in the musical. She says, “I have so much fun learning the show material with my castmates.”

When asked what her favorite song is, Viñas replied, “Right now, my favorite song is called ‘The Bargain.’ ” It is a scene where two people are fostering a young girl for money, and the main character comes back to save her. This is a scene filled with negotiation and comedy. Viñas said that this scene “is in the spirit of the cynicism of the musical.” Even though Browning enjoys many of the songs, her favorite is “One Day More” “because of the way all of the vocal parts overlap.”  

Viñas is especially excited to see how Mr. Robinson, Director of Performing Arts Spaces and AV Technology, transforms the PAC auditorium. She is also looking forward to producing a scene of students all dressed up as soldiers fighting a war, as she believes this will be a really fun visual to see on stage. She expresses that “it will be really crazy but still delightful.” 

So far, Viñas claims that she is proudest of how the students have responded to her as a new teacher and to her new rules and procedures. She is also proud of how the students have  communicated with her, as it really helps make the process run smoother. 

Viñas hopes that once the audience leaves the auditorium, they will reflect about “the struggles and values that they commit their lives to and that they are willing to change their perspectives on people that they think are poorer or in a lesser position than them.” The winter musical is an exciting upcoming RCDS production that is going to tell a powerful story, promising to leave a lasting impact on its audience.