This year, the De Soto High School theater department has made a change to the schedule to accommodate students’ agendas. The musical and the play will be switching dates, with the musical being put on in the second semester and the play being performed during the week of Nov. 7-10.

This change occurred because the majority of the males involved in theater are also involved in fall sports and therefore, could not participate in the musical. This proved to be an issue, as those in Madrigals are required to be in the musical.

“Rather than having to deal with the conflict between the two, we decided to move it [the musical] to … the winter, because we have fewer people that play winter sports,” director Erin Purifoy said.

Purifoy believes that this change will have a positive effect on the musical, as the cast will be able to leave rehearsals earlier and avoid late nights. This will also allow the cast members to have more energy both in school and while performing on stage.

“It gets to be very, very exhausting, so we’re looking out for the benefit of everyone involved,” Purifoy said.

While generally the musical gets more of an audience, Purifoy hopes that by moving the play to the fall, more people will attend it. Yet, the response of the cast members to the switch has been mixed.

Senior Lindsay Everson thinks the musical swap is a smart, but different idea.

“Being able to swap so we have more men in the musical makes sense, but it is different,” Everson said. “I think a lot of the upper classmen think it’s really annoying, and they’re just mad that things are different.”

The play, Rumors, was selected by Purifoy. The play is a comedy about four couples who go to a dinner party. When the first couple arrives, they find the host in bed with a gunshot wound to the head and the hostess gone. To keep the other guests from finding out they start making up lies and try to hide what is going on.

“The play seems really good this year, it’s definitely the best we’ve had in a long time,” senior Dylan Foster said.

Also, audience members will have the option of buying their tickets online this year thus making them more accessible. Tickets will begin to be sold on Oct. 15 priced at $4 for students, $5 for senior citizens and $6 for everyone else.