Auditions for the spring musical, “42nd Street,” brought students of all grades together today and earlier this week during lunch on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday.

“42nd Street” will be the first mainstage production to be performed in the Rothschild Performing Arts Center in April. A lively, upbeat tap musical, “42nd Street” tells the story of a chorus girl’s rise to stardom on Broadway. The show calls for a tap corps of around a dozen dancers, some of whom will play female lead roles and supporting roles.

“It’s a really, really fun show that has dark sides to the story and happy sides to the story, and I always look for somebody who can tell that story more than anything else,” musical director Laura Lang-Ree said.

To give the cast more time to work with their voice teachers and hone their tap skills, Lang-Ree has decided to push auditions earlier than usual. Students were asked to prepare a song from a musical and a monologue for their auditions, which simulated the style of professional auditions. All students who auditioned were also required to participate in dance auditions today in Nichols.

“A lot of people have been really clever about picking songs that either reflect the kind of character they want to audition for or the style of the musical itself, which is really smart,” Lang-Ree said.

Callbacks will be posted tonight and the second round of auditions will be held next Monday and Tuesday before the cast list is announced on Wednesday. Rehearsals for the musical begin in February after a cast meeting in early October.