Local musical cuts loose and cuts into City Council meeting due to technical difficulties

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — Let’s hear it for the boy… and the rest of the cast, too! Tuesday night, an upcoming Opera House Theatre Company musical cut loose, and cut into the Wilmington City Council meeting.

Throughout the first hour of the meeting, meeting attendees could hear excited backstage chatter, dance steps, and even musical numbers belted by the show’s leads cutting in and out.

“The mic system that is transmitting off–off key from the theater onto our system. We apologize,” one staff member explained as music faded in and out.
“Well, I guess we’re going to have a play and a city council meeting at the same time. That’s wonderful,” Wilmington Mayor Bill Saffo laughed.

The upcoming musical, Footloose was holding a dress rehearsal in another part of Thalian Hall during a council meeting. The show opens this weekend. Both events used the same radio frequency, which led to the mix up.

In the case of life imitating art, the play, which is about dancing in a small town when local government disallows it, was told to shut down for the night.

The production lost a good deal of rehearsal time Tuesday night, but will continue practicing it’s steps until opening night Friday.