Partner of late Moon Area High School theater teacher wants to fill Friday's show in his honor

MOON TOWNSHIP, Pa. (KDKA) -- The show must go on at Moon Area High School, but the lights feel a little dimmer now without theater teacher Dr. Robert Michael. Students and staff said Dr. Michael was the heart and soul of the theater department for more than a decade, but he died suddenly from a heart attack about eleven weeks ago.

"Rob was everything. He was amazing, he cared so deeply for our students here at Moon Area High School," said choral director Lauren Emrich. 

"It was completely shocking. I still expect him to walk out, I still look for his car every morning," Emrich said. 

Theater student and senior Austin Keys said, "What I loved about him was that he was so determined to just make everything the best it possibly can be."

Dr. Michael was a Pittsburgh native through and through. He graduated from Baldwin High School and got his doctorate at Point Park. His partner, Chris Alan, said Dr. Michael's passion always remained with theater.

"The musical theater department was something that was very, very important to him at Moon," said Alan.

His obituary said as the head of the drama department, Dr. Michael led over 20 productions. Now Alan is keeping his loved one's memory alive and his dreams coming true.

"His dream was always to have a full audience at one of the shows and he had so many shows under his belt there at the school," said Alan.

So Alan bought 600 tickets for this Friday's 7 p.m. show of "The Drowsy Chaperone" and he's giving them to others for free who use code "DRMIKE" to guarantee a full house. 

"The students I don't think have ever experienced that and they worked so hard to put on a show," Alan said. "I mean their leader was gone, and they had to figure it out, come together, but watching the students perform and watching the students together, I can see so much of him in them."

Dr. Michael is a hard act to follow, but with only about 100 tickets left, students, staff and loved ones know this is their show to honor their beloved theater teacher.

"He was a force, that's for sure. Everything he did, he did with everything that he had," Alan said. 

"It's an amazing show, and it's something that is truly exceptional, and I think everyone should go see it," said Keys. 

"It's definitely been a very difficult road. We've all banded together and united to create beautiful art in his memory," added Emrich.