Rehearsals for the spring play, The Locker Next 2 Mine, began on Monday, Jan. 12, and the cast is more than excited.

The content in the play this year is much different than previous years, according to director Jason Hagg.

“I think the content is a little heavier than what [the students] are used to. I also think the content is more relevant to [the student’s] age group. In previous years, [we] haven’t done stuff that is relevant to kids, and I think this is going to help us tremendously in regards to showing some relevance to kids in the community,” Hagg said.

The Locker Next 2 Mine deals with many topics said to be ‘heavy,’ including bullying and loss.

In the show, Alysa arrives as a mid-year transfer to find a school suffering from the loss of two students – one a wildly popular lacrosse player, and the other a so-called ‘outsider.’

“[This show is important because] kids in the show and kids that come to see it need to know that everybody in the hallway is a person. That’s it,” Hagg said. “Every single person in the hallway means something to someone, whether it’s a mom or dad, their best friend, their boyfriend, girlfriend, whether it’s coaches, teachers. Every person in our hallway really has an impact on life every single day and the way things work for other people.”

Junior Emma Goldsby, who will play Alysa in the show, agrees that these are important topics to bring awareness to.

“People just don’t realize that there are kids like that, and they just want to be noticed. I try to stick up for those kids, so I think it’s really important that we remember that they exist,” Goldsby said.

Along with content different from previous years, the cast has also noticed a difference in how the show is organized.

“The audition process is totally different, and it’s good. It’s a good improvement. The schedule is way more organized, and people are actually showing up, which is cool,” Goldsby said.

Cast size this year has also increased.

“I didn’t expect almost 40 kids to show up. So, for having 40 kids show up and only [teaching] here for three months, that made me feel really good. It’s like we have a lot of interest, and interest is always good for us,” Hagg said.

Hagg has done a good job promoting auditions, according to sophomore Adam Rettig, who will be playing Brady in the show.

“Mr. Hagg kept saying in drama class that he was really in need of some guys, so I decided the day of to try out,” Rettig said.

Hagg and several cast members had the opportunity to meet the playwright, who attended Blue Valley North’s production of the show.

“Jonathon Dorf was a great dude. I went to one of his workshops, too, so I got to see some other things and talk to him extensively. To have him sit next to us and to watch Blue Valley North’s show was really, really great,” Hagg said.

According to Hagg, students at BVNHS, Blue Valley High School and many other high schools are looking forward to seeing the DHS production of The Locker Next 2 Mine.