Moffat County High School Brings Anything Goes to Craig Stage

“It’s truly a lot of work.”

That’s the sentiment echoing through the halls of Moffat County High School as students prepare to drag the glitter and chaos of classic Broadway down to Craig. It’s not just a catchphrase; it’s the reality of bringing Cole Porter’s Anything Goes to life on the local stage, a production that demands more than just memorizing lines and hitting high notes. It requires a kind of communal endurance that only a school auditorium can provide, where the air smells of dust and desperation, and the rhythm is set by the frantic beating of a hundred hearts.

The show opens its doors on April 16 and 17 at 6 p.m., with matinees at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. on April 18. But if you look closely at the preparation, you’ll see that the performance is only the tip of the iceberg. The real story is in the months of sweat equity that preceded it, a process directed by choir and drama instructor Juliann Matheson, who didn’t just pick a musical because it was popular. She picked it because it matters.

“With thousands of musicals published, I try to seek one that is not only entertaining for the audience, but one that can help the students understand the significance of the Broadway musical in American culture,” Matheson said.

There’s a warmth to that ambition. It’s easy to dismiss high school theater as mere extracurricular fun, but Matheson sees it as a vital thread in the fabric of American music. Porter, the master of the genre, wrote songs that are catchy, witty, and funny, and she wants her students to appreciate his contribution to that legacy. It’s a heavy lift for teenagers who are already juggling AP classes, sports, and the existential dread of impending graduation, but she believes the payoff is worth the strain.

One of the biggest differentiators this year is the orchestra. It’s rare, and wonderful, to have live musicians accompanying the cast in the pit instead of relying on a pre-recorded audio track that plays from a speaker. But that liveliness brings its own challenges. The score isn’t always written with student performers in mind, and coordinating a live ensemble with a cast of over 40 students requires a level of precision that borders on the miraculous.

The cast itself is one of the largest the school has produced in recent years, a sea of faces that includes students working as stage crew, technical wizards in the wings, and the musicians themselves. It’s a record-breaking amount of talent, and it has fostered a unique kind of mentorship. Matheson has watched seniors coach freshmen, passing down the secrets of the trade, helping the younger kids understand what is actually involved in keeping the ship afloat.

Take senior Taya Told, for instance. She’s balancing rehearsals, schoolwork, and the final countdown to graduation, playing Mrs. Harcourt in her last big show. She admits it’s been “very hectic,” but she loves the role because it forces her out of her comfort zone. “I really enjoy playing her because she is different from what I’ve played before,” Told said. “It’s really fun to play a character who is so opposite to your personality.”

That contrast is the point, isn’t it? The chaos of the show mirrors the chaos of being a teenager in Craig right now. You have the structured world of the script colliding with the unpredictable energy of live performance. And yet, there’s a cohesion forming. You can feel it in the way the seniors are stepping up, the manner in which the freshmen are listening, and the rhythm with which the orchestra is tuning their instruments.

When the curtain rises on April 16, it will be more than just a play. It will be an affirmation of the hours spent in the auditorium, the mistakes made and corrected, the laughter shared in the wings, and the quiet pride of knowing you helped make something beautiful out of the ordinary. The lights will dim, the orchestra will swell, and for two hours, Craig will be somewhere else entirely.