No strangers to the stage

     For this week’s installment of Cast Chats, the spotlight is on Coal City High School seniors Rebecca Connelly and Brenna Kelly, who play as ensemble characters in “Les Miserables.”
    Neither of the girls are strangers to the performing arts as both are either in school bands, speech, color guard, or have participated in the high school’s fall plays.
    Being seniors, Connelly and Kelly reflect on their high school career and what they may have done differently.
    Connelly mentions she wishes she would have prepared more for musical auditions because she would have liked to be a lead role. Likewise, Kelly also feels she could have done more over the last four years. She says she regrets not taking more risks sooner.
    “I barely stepped out of my comfort zone throughout my freshman and sophomore years. As a junior and now a senior, I have stepped out of my bubble a lot more, and I wish I had started that growth sooner.”
    After reminiscing about  high school, both girls were asked about their futures after graduation.
    Kelly will be attending the University of Illinois to study general engineering.         Connelly plans to keep things simpler and wants to travel around the country. The top states on her bucket list include North Carolina and Florida, but after she has experienced those two regions, she is ready to go wherever the wind takes her. Eventually, Connelly wishes to settle down in one place and become a nanny.
    Kelly and Connelly are eager to perform “Les Miserables” on stage alongside the rest of the cast at the Coal City Performing Arts Center. Show dates are March 8-11, and advanced reserved seat tickets are $8 per adult and $5 for children and senior citizens by visiting bit.ly/CCLesMis.