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Comedy 'Drowsy Chaperone' on stage at Canton High Friday and Saturday

Posted 3/23/11

CANTON -- Canton Central School’s spring musical production this year is “The Drowsy Chaperone,” on stage in Hugh C. Williams High School auditorium Friday and Saturday, March 25 and 26, at …

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Comedy 'Drowsy Chaperone' on stage at Canton High Friday and Saturday

Posted

CANTON -- Canton Central School’s spring musical production this year is “The Drowsy Chaperone,” on stage in Hugh C. Williams High School auditorium Friday and Saturday, March 25 and 26, at 7:30 p.m.

A 2006 Tony Award winner for Best Book and Best Score, “The Drowsy Chaperone” is a “musical within a comedy.” The show begins when a die-hard musical-theater fan plays his favorite cast album of the fictional show “The Drowsy Chaperone” on his record player, and the musical bursts to life in his living room. The “Man in Chair” (Jay Kepes) narrates the show as viewers are transported to the year 1928 and a world where “the champagne flowed while the caviar chilled and all the world was a party.”

The plot revolves around a young Broadway starlet named Janet Van de Graff (Claire Woodcock) who is poised to leave her career on the stage to marry the young oil tycoon, Robert Martin (Mike Shirtz). Broadway producer Feldzieg (Jay Foster-Grover) does not want to lose his leading lady and tries his best to break up Janet’s impending marriage, while one of his showgirls, Kitty (Audrey Mooradian), tries her best to snag Feldzieg for herself and replace Janet on the stage.

Since this is the 1920’s, Janet has a chaperone (Kate Savage) who is supposed to be keeping an eye on her before the wedding but becomes distracted by a Latin lover named Aldolpho (Zach Kenny). The wedding is to take place at the home of the very rich (and rather forgetful) Mrs. Tottendale (Marissa Robis) who is assisted by her underling (David Haenel). Add to this two gangsters disguised as pastry chefs (Matt Barnes and Pat McGaw), the best man George (Michael Jent), an aviatrix (Nicole Curtis), the building superintendent (Brandon Bartley) and a chorus of servants, adoring fans, and monkeys (Lindy Pynchon, Mary Logan, Carli Baldwin, Anna Newman, Brigid Carr, Erin Hampson, Rachel Horwitz, Anna Tulloch, Thressa Zimmerman, Rebecca DelRossi, Olivia Knowlden, Ansel Shipley, and Zhusupbek), the result is a wonderful, zany, comedy filled with song and dance.

The High School Technical Theater class (Jared Adner, Kerianne Ames, Alyshia Binion, Meghan Catlin, Katie Christy, Nate Christy, Samantha Coffey, Joe Cross, Morgan Eggleston, Shelby Ellison, Nate Gibson, Hudson Hooper, Travis Jordan, Zach Kenny, Josh Mousaw, Kyle Nason, Shelley Peria, Jon Pinckney, Jake Pitcher, Marissa Robis, Tyler Thomas, Saori Uchida, Adam Widener, Sam Wilson) designed the scenery with the assistance of scenic artist Bill Newman.

Students on the production team include Kelly French, Stage Manager, and Gabrielle Hopkins-Betters, Assistant Stage Manager. Tim Savage will be conducting the pit orchestra which will include Canton student musicians Seba Molnar, Hannah Roberts, Abbie Savage, and Jon Carls; college students Tom Macaluso and Kevin Angstadt; and community members Wally Siebel, Warren Wisner, David Alderson, Keith Ziemba, and Barbara Burdick. Canton alumnus Erin Lassial is the choreographer and Sue and Lauren Dean costumed the show. Brianne Wicks is the vocal music director and Kimberly Busch is the stage director and technical director.

Tickets to “The Drowsy Chaperone” will go on sale in the high school office March 14, for $10 for adults and $7 for students and senior citizens.