'The Show Must Go On' as New Rochelle students debut all-virtual spring musical

NEW YORK - New Rochelle High School won't be putting on your typical musical this year.

The school spring musical "Is There Life After High School?" which debuts this month with be all-virtual this year.

In the lead role is 18-year-old Shana Belfast. Belfast, who has autism, has been waiting for her chance in the spotlight for more than a year.  The school district became one of the first districts in the country to shut down last year, ultimately canceling 2020’s spring play.

"The kids were very excited about it, a lot of Seniors who were waiting their entire year for their senior year moment on stage, and it just got taken away," said Theater Director Anthony Stripe.

The school has proven they could take 100 members of their cast and crew, safely socially distance them throughout the school, and still put on a show.

And although they can’t have an audience just yet, they are filming their performances on iPads. The performance will be then streamed to the entire community.

For Stripe, it's still a miracle this show has come this far after so many months of uncertainty.

"So a lot of what people will see, they created. Our students are filming, they came up with the concepts, they came up with the costumes, they're mixing the music, they're directing the videos," Stripe said.