Photo: The full company performing “Light” from Next to Normal in the finale of Broadway Night in Belmont

It’s little wonder why the auditorium of Belmont High School was packed over Friday and Saturday night. For 90 minutes, the stage could have been some theater in Manhattan as a group of talented students belted out and danced the best of musical theater in the annual Broadway Night in Belmont by artists from Belmont High School’s Performing Arts Company.

Produced by Ezra Flam, directed by Jenny Lifson who handled the choreography, and Jonathan Kessler who was the music direction as well as the company’s accompanist, the opening “act” of the PAC artistic season spotlighting the individual skills of veterans and newcomers in solo, duo, and ensemble adapations of well known works and hidden treasures of the Broadway songbook.

Rehearsals are already underway for the fall play which this year will be three performances of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing (which was last performed by BHS PAC in 2007) from Nov. 12 to Nov. 14. The spring musical – still to be announced – will have performaces on March 11 to March 13 with an afternoon matinee on March 13. The annual One Acts – each directed by seniors – will take place on May 6 to May 8. And don’t overlook the always surprising Improv stagings in Febraury and May with an Improv Marathon on April 16.