Springtime is seen as a time of peace and calm when compared to winter, but this could not be further from reality. For Wilsonville High School students, spring is the most stressful part of the school year, and this is achieved through a pile of various looming events.

AP exams, finals, and graduation are common springtime stressors, but theatre students also have to prepare for the opening of the spring show, which isn’t always easy. The spring production is often on a time crunch due to its position at the end of the year, adding stress to its contributors.

Sophomore Bea Halsey says, “Theatre affects my ability to study…because then I don’t have time, because rehearsal ends fairly late. [Springtime] is pretty stressful because of this. Also, apart from my AP tests I have many other classes that I need to study for. But [my AP class] is harder.”

Some ways she tried to balance theatre life and school life were, “Working between scenes when I’m not onstage, and staying up later than I should to do the homework.” Next year she will try to “balance her time better,” when AP season rolls around.

Junior Ellie Crouch took 3 AP tests this year. She says she mostly studied, “after rehearsal, like during dinnertime. At rehearsals that go later I would study here in the PAC whenever I could.”

She says some of the stress has gone away now that her exams are over, but she still “feels stressed about other classes I’ve been neglecting.” But she is glad that she is doing the show, as “it is fun and I like the community.”

While theatre is very rewarding, it can also be very stressful around this time of year when paired with other scholastic endeavors. It’s all part of a delicate balance that all students have to deal with.