With the construction of City High’s new Fine Arts Wing beginning, the current music and theatre area is in disorder.

“It’s going to be very difficult on certain days to rehearse,” Orchestra director, Candace Wiebener said.  “It will probably be extremely noisy, so we will have to set up folding chairs on the stage. If it’s a rainy day and they’re not digging with their bulldozers, then we will just be in here. “

Both the orchestra and theatre department will be displaced during the next year and a half of construction.

“I’m going to have to basically carry all my supplies around with me through out the day,” drama teacher, Troy Peters said.  “It’s nice to have a headquarters but its not going to be here for me next year.”

The orchestra room will become a scene shop and Peter’s current classroom will be a new entrance to the school.

“It’s a beautiful room, it’s a gorgeous room to play in,” Wiebener said. “And I will miss my office, it was a great place to teach.”

Wiebener’s new temporary office is a plywood shelf in a cello locker. This is where her computer will be located until new offices are ready. Last week Mrs. Wiebener has to move out of her office.

“It was really sad when I locked the door yesterday,” Wiebener said. “I thought, wow I just realized this is the end of 42 years of being up here and doing this and really liking it.”

Her office was located above the orchestra room.

“It’s the perfect size for lessons and I’ve had it fixed so when students come in here they feel comfortable and at ease.” Wiebener said. “Now I have nothing, its just gone.”

Peters will also miss his classroom. It’s used for his teaching, but also as a dressing room, makeup room and green room during the plays and musicals.

“It’s kind of like a dance studio. It’s big and open and its crazy, we really like it as a big space to rehearse and perform,” Peters said. “So it will be weird being in a smaller classroom with a bunch of desks.”

The new facility will feature completely new practice rooms, classrooms and offices.

“For a year and a half there won’t be any practice rooms for kids to use,” Wiebener said. “and I think that’s a problem.”

Peters will also have to move to other classrooms to teach

“I will have to have a lot of patience and understanding,” Peters said. “I wish we had more space here at City where I could have my own space during construction.”

Peters new classroom will be a section of what is currently the band room. The new scene shop will also be an addition for the theatre department.

“We will have an actual scene shop that is off the back of Opstad and a big  access door that we can roll sets in and out of,” Peters said. “because right now we are down in the  dungeon in a small little scene shop and we have to carry everything up stairs or outside and around the building.”

While Wiebener’s students will eventually have new practice rooms and the theatre will have an attached scene shop both teachers are facing some uncertainty about the rest of the year.

“My commitment is to this year’s senior class,” Wiebener said. “It’s huge and they’re great kids and I want the last two concerts to be as good as they possibly can be.”