Delta Secondary drama students will be putting their dancing shoes on for the latest musical at Genesis Theatre.

Footloose, a high-energy dance musical based on the popular 1984 movie, is scheduled to run next week at the Ladner high school.

Director Matt Hume says he's noticed other teachers walking down the hall singing the musical's title track to themselves.

"The great thing about this show is that there's so many songs that stick in your head," he says, noting Kenny Loggins' hit is certainly one of those. "You're going to leave tapping your foot or will have them [the show's songs] in your head for a week."

Most of the songs from the musical were not actually written for the original movie but are popular songs from the 1980s, Hume notes.

"The music is so pop-y and so fun that it mixes perfectly with the really dramatic moments," he says. "It's a great rollercoaster ride and I think they accented that with the music really, really well."

The story is about a carefree city boy (Thomas Buchanan as Ren McCormack) who comes to the small conservative town of Bomont where rock 'n' roll and dancing are forbidden. Ren, not willing to fall in line, goes up against the authorities with the hopes of lifting the ban and happens to win the girl (Robin Richardson as Ariel Moore) along the way.

"It really is just a great show about having the ability to cut loose, not restricting yourself and giving yourself over when you get that inspiration," says Hume. "That's definitely

something I want students to take along with them when they leave the show is if the inspiration hits you, be artistic, be out there, put yourself out there."

He notes the cast only calls for about 20 roles but there are 42 students in the production.

"That's been the biggest challenge, wrangling 42 students, making sure everybody's at every rehearsal, making sure everybody's on the same page," he says. "It's been a challenge, but it's been a really great challenge. The energy they bring every day is outstanding. We couldn't do it without them coming every day, ready to go, lines memorized, costumes ready."

Richardson, a Grade 12 student, says she's having a lot of fun with the role of Ariel.

"I get to do everything that I love to do. I love singing, I love dancing, I love acting and I get to do all that with a bunch of people that I love."

Richardson, who's been dancing since she was two, says she really likes the original movie, which starred Kevin Bacon, Lori Singer and John Lithgow, and is thankful to be involved with the production.

"I was a fan of the origi-nal for a long time so when I found out we were doing Footloose I was so excited."

The musical is choreographed by Karen Tsui and Katy Lewis, and musically directed by Catherine Campbell.

Early bird tickets, which are on sale now, are $10 for students and $12 for adults. At-the-door tickets are priced $12 for students and $15 for adults.

Performances are from Tuesday, March 6 to Friday, March 9 at 7 p.m. (curtain). Doors open at 6: 15 p.m.

For tickets or more information, call 604-940-0069 or visit http: //footloosedss. weebly.com. You can also visit the Genesis Theatre box office in person at 5005-45th Ave., Ladner.

dwillis@delta-optimist.com