Havre High offering live and streaming productions of 'Elf'

Havre High School drama students are putting on a musical production of the holiday classic "Elf" with some modifications due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The play will be produced both live for a limited audience and livestreamed this weekend, Friday and Saturday, and next weekend, Dec. 11 and 12, with a showing at 7 p.m. each day and an additional 2 p.m. showing on both Saturdays.

Due to COVID-19, attendance at the event is limited. For each show, members of the production will receive two tickets for friends and family to attend. Those names will be placed on a list and entry will be monitored at the door.

"They are disappointed not to be performing for a live audience. They work so hard all year, so it is hard," director Angela Pratt said. 

The pandemic also moved the schedule back a few weeks from its original dates.

"We moved the production back a few weeks once. I woke up and just had a bad feeling and told them we needed to move it back, and then, that night, we had a lot of people on quarantine," Pratt said.

No theater students are on quarantine right now, she said. 

The musical, which had a run on Broadway, is based on the 2003 film starring Will Ferrell.

Montana Actors' Theatre is working with Steve Neiffer and the media arts departments at the high school and Havre Middle School, connecting with Vicki Proctor at the high school and Jeremiah Nitz at the middle school, to livestream the event, MAT Artistic Director Grant Olson said.

The show will be streamed live each production for community members who cannot attend the live show. 

Information and the link to the live stream can be found on the Havre High website. The show will not be recorded for future viewing. 

The online viewing will be free, however it offers an opportunity to donate to support this and future productions at Havre High.