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Dear Friends of the Theater,

Welcome to our first musical production, CHICAGO: Teen Edition, as we welcome you to our newly renovated Honesdale High School Performing Arts Center!

At this performance, Chicago, with music by John Kander, lyrics by Fred Ebb, and book by Fred Ebb and Bob Fosse is set in the jazz age.  Based on a 1926 play of the same title by reporter Maurine Dallas Watkins, about actual criminals and the crimes on which she reported. The story is a satire on corruption in the administration of criminal justice and the concept of the "celebrity criminal."

“Chicago: Teen Edition” is a musical extravaganza that is sure to wow all ages. Our story of Roxie Hart (sophomore Lily Taraschuk) and Velma Kelly (senior Rochelle Keast); follows Roxie Hart, whose crime of passion lands her on Merry Murderesses Row, sharing the spotlight with vaudeville icon and fellow felon Velma Kelly. To keep their names in the headlines and themselves off death row, Roxie and Velma rely on lawyer Billy Flynn (junior Seth Buckwalter) to “razzle dazzle” the jury and the press core.

The original Chicago Broadway production opened in 1975 at the 46th Street Theatre and ran for 936 performances, until 1977. Bob Fosse directed and choreographed the original production, and his style is strongly identified with the show. Myself, Scott D. Miller as director and Mason Marie Clark, as choreographer, has studied Bob Fosse's work for many years, and we are very excited to teach and produce Chicago with our students!

Chicago was revived on Broadway in 1996.  The 1996 Broadway production holds the record as the longest-running musical revival and the longest-running American musical in Broadway history. It is the second longest-running show ever to run on Broadway, behind only The Phantom of the Opera (which just closed on Sunday, April 16, 2023). Chicago surpassed Cats on November 23, 2014, when it played its 7,486th performance. Chicago has been staged in numerous productions around the world, and has toured extensively in the United States and United Kingdom. The 2002 film adaptation of the musical won the Academy Award for Best Picture.

We are grateful for our board of directors, administrators, teachers, students, parents, production assistants, stage crew members, community, and the generous support of our Season Sponsorships.  We hope that you will patronize these businesses in show of your support as they have supported the arts in our community!

The spirit of collaboration has always been a hallmark of Honesdale.  We believe, with our board of directors, that the Wayne Highlands School District is proud of our success in the area of the three “A’s” Academics, Arts, and Athletics.  Education is a lifelong endeavor. The arts provide opportunities to use valuable critical thinking skills and explore diverse perspectives. For sixty-four years, Honesdale High School Performing Arts have helped define our community both on stage and off.

Thank you for your attendance and support at this performance.  Now, sit back, relax, and get ready, as we bring the best of Broadway to you through our student musical productions.  Patrons like you make our presentations possible when the lights go down and the curtain goes up. 

Sincerely yours,

Scott D. Miller
Executive Director