Belle Vernon teachers' strike could doom musical, theater program

The fate of the Belle Vernon High School musical program is shrouded in uncertainty after teachers announced they plan to strike six days before opening night if a new labor contract isn’t reached.

The strike is scheduled to start March 13.

That could impede a strict schedule set by the show’s directors, causing the show to not go on as planned March 19-22.

If the show is not performed, the theater department won’t have money to continue the program next school year, according to Joyce McDonough, the production’s artistic director. She said pre-sold tickets for “Cinderella” would be refunded, leaving the department with no revenue.

“It will ruin the program forever,” said McDonough, who is not a teacher but has a child involved in the production.

The show, which has been a priority for more than 100 students for the past three months, requires costumes from a rental company and a fly system from a special rigging company.

Rights to the musical locks the district into certain dates for the performances.

As the potential strike looms, students and directors continue to to learn lines and music, build sets and hem costumes.

“Our main concern is actually the kids because we don’t ever want to put kids in a situation where they will fail. … It’s extraordinarily unfair to put them on stage in front of the public when they’re not prepared properly,” McDonough said, citing director Michael Rozell, a teacher at the school.

Members of the teaching staff announced Monday their intention to strike after the district canceled a Feb. 26 negotiating session.

The Belle Vernon Area Education Association has been in talks with the district on a new five-year contract since January 2019. Teachers and education specialists are working under terms of the previous agreement that expired June 30.

Daneen Watson, union president and a Spanish teacher, said another negotiating session is scheduled Wednesday.

“Our hope is that we can settle with the board Wednesday night and there is no distraction to the students in general,” Watson said.

For Belle Vernon senior Gianna Lorenzo, who plays the Fairy Godmother, this year’s show is the last time she will be able to perform on the high school stage.

“All of us have worked so hard and we quite literally put our blood, sweat and tears into this production,” said Lorenzo, 18. “I know it would just break our hearts to not see it happen.”

She said that cast members wore purple Wednesday in support of the show, along with students participating in the Monessen musical.

Other students involved in the musical feel betrayed by the events surrounding the strike, McDonough said.

“They feel … used and are just devastated,” she said. “They’re working at overdrive speed to try to put a show together, which is extraordinarily unfair for them. They’re kind of in disbelief that no one thought about them.

“It’s an extraordinary program because this is one place where people from very different backgrounds and very different social groups can come together and find a home.”