JERSEY SHORE — Jersey Shore Area Senior High School’s spring musical is back on after a casting dispute that had put school administrators at odds with the production’s directors, cast and families was quietly resolved.

Based on comments from concerned parents, the high school’s production of “The Pirates of Penzance” was indefinitely paused last month after a female student was cast in a lead role originally written for a male character.

The administration declined to specify whether this particular casting choice caused the controversy, but confirmed that concerns raised with the superintendent were addressed with the directors.

According to a student involved in the production, a complaint was submitted to Superintendent Brian Ulmer’s office in November regarding a rumor that a male lead would be cast as a girl due to the limited number of boys who auditioned. At the heart of the complaint was opposition to a female student playing a romantic lead opposite another female character.

That student’s parent told The Express that the cast list was delayed for several weeks due to the dispute, during which time high school staff fought to allow the musical to continue.

Rehearsals went on for several weeks before being halted in mid-January over unspecified “administrative concerns.” As of the first week of February, the cast had not resumed rehearsals for a show that typically runs in mid-March.

Ulmer and the Jersey Shore School Board maintain that the musical was never canceled and say they were not responsible for the postponement of rehearsals.

In an email forwarded to The Express, School Board President Michelle Stemler said, “Dr. Ulmer gave clear parameters to the musical directors to move forward with the production,” and added that “the board fully supports his decision.”

According to Ulmer, the parameters, which have not been made public, were issued “to avoid a disruption to the school environment such as the one that is occurring.”

In previous years, musical productions at Jersey Shore in which female students were cast in male roles drew little attention and sparked no significant controversy. As recently as 2019, female students performed male roles for school audiences without incident.

In late January, Stacy Clarke, a parent of one of the leads and a licensed psychotherapist, sent a letter to administrators demanding a reconsideration of their decision, outlining the position of many musical parents.

“My position is not rooted in parental favoritism; it is rooted in fact, professional expertise and lived experience within this district,” Clarke said. “There is no empirical, historical or clinical evidence — locally, nationally or globally — that cross-gender casting in theater causes psychological harm, confusion or moral degradation in children. This practice is commonplace across school districts, professional theater and theatrical traditions dating back to antiquity.”

Clarke, speaking in her professional capacity as a psychologist and mandated reporter, emphasized repeatedly that the casting decision does not constitute harm of any kind.

“From both a clinical and personal standpoint, I can state unequivocally: students are not being harmed — psychologically, developmentally or morally — by a female student playing a male role in a school musical,” she said.

Clarke criticized the board for focusing on the musical rather than the broader challenges facing high school students. She described a student body struggling with profound anxiety, rising rates of school refusal and self-harm and feelings of marginalization and unpreparedness for the pressures of high school and beyond.

“Against this reality, the decision to claim concern for student well-being while targeting a musical production is not just misguided — it is negligent,” Clarke said. “Rather than engaging in fear-based, sound-bite policymaking that may appear politically convenient, I urge you to address the actual, complex and data-supported crises facing students in this district.”

On Thursday morning, The Express learned that the production was back on, though it remains unclear whether any changes were made to the casting.

The production’s directors could not be reached for comment.