Director's Letter
As usual, I found myself conflicted when it was time to choose this year’s show. However, once I saw we had enough students interested in participating in the spring musical, I knew immediately that we could try and tackle Disney and Cameron Mackintosh's Mary Poppins. What I did not realize was that “tackle” would be the right word--it truly is a monstrous show. Lots of sets, illusions, plus flying--again?! I was lucky to have a group of parent volunteers who were willing to jump in to create this amazing production. The creative team was awesome from beginning to end, hanging in there when it was not only tiring but also just plain hard to know in what direction to go. But no challenge was too difficult and we all pulled together. The set is beyond compare--wait until you see it magically transform before your eyes! There were countless long hours and trips to Lowe’s, Goodwill, and Hobby Lobby, yet the best part of it all was the laughter we shared as a group. I cannot thank everyone enough for being here every night and most weekends since the beginning of the year.
Then there were the other production demands that required cast parents willing to lend a hand. Costumes for fifty-five people plus cast members playing multiple parts made it a formidable process. Although we rented some of the pieces, a wonderful group of parents decided to sew their hearts out and create many of the beautiful costumes you see on stage. For the props, our parent chair (with help from the children, in many cases) took great care in creating the colorful kites and also searched high and low for countless other items we needed to authenticate the experience for our cast and audience. Transforming the lobby, selling the tickets, stocking and manning the concessions, and procuring the swag to share as part of our publicity all happened because of our wonderful theatre supporters. These were all daunting tasks, to say the least. Again, they all deserve a huge thank you for all their hard work and dedication.
I must say that this huge cast worked extremely hard to learn songs and lines, but it did not stop there. Mastering choreography both on and off stage (moving set pieces, pulling the curtains in and out, timing the costuming quick-changes) plus flying (kites and actors across the stage) were all part of the process. Finally, learning to spell a long, obnoxious word and successfully wrangling our younger ones back and forth to Ms. Oden’s room added to the mix. Many of these students were also playing soccer and baseball, running track and participating in field events, and trying to keep up with their academic commitments throughout the rehearsal timeline. Hats off to this terrific group of young people.
I believe that you will love this “Practically Perfect” production Mary Poppins. While the Banks family discovers that “Anything Can Happen if You Let It” and “A Spoonful of Sugar Helps the Medicine Go Down,” the greatest lesson Mary teaches everyone is that our family’s love is all we need to be happy.
- Holly Mason
