Catch some rising stars
Here are a few of the many spring musicals gracing local high school theaters this spring:
"Jekyll & Hyde," Kettering Fairmont High School auditorium, 3301 Shroyer Rd., April 17-20 nightly at 7:30 p.m. with full orchestra. Tickets are $6 for students and seniors and $10 for adults. For tickets, call 499-2647 or order online at www.ketteringmusic.org
“Godspell,” Stivers School for the Arts Centennial Hall, 8 p.m. April 19 and 20. Tickets are $8 for students and $10 for adults. Call 542-7409 for reservations.
"Sweeney Todd," Centerville High School Theatre, at Centerville Schools Performing Arts Center, 500 East Franklin St, 7:30 p.m. April 19, 20, 26, and 27. Tickets are $5 for seniors, $8 for students and $10 for adults. Tickets can be purchased at 439-3535 or http://centervillehstheatre.com/tickets.
“Anything Goes!” in the Beavercreek High School Alumni Auditorium at 7:30 p.m. April 26-28 as well as 2 p.m. April 28. Tickets are $8 for adults and $5 for students and seniors. Tickets may be purchased at the door or by calling 429-7547, extension 1648.
When I was in high school, there was an unwritten rule that the homecoming king and queen had to be a football player and cheerleader. What happened at Kettering Fairmont High School this past fall would have been virtually inconceivable: Homecoming king and queen A.J. Breslin and Caroline Grogan are two of the the school’s top actors, rather than athletes.
“That would never have happened when I was at Fairmont,” I marveled to my daughter, Veronica, a junior.
“Theater kids are popular now,” she explained, nonchalantly, as if it were an established fact, hardly worth remarking upon.
When did that happen? When did the erstwhile theater geeks join the ranks of the cool kids?
You could call it the “Glee factor” — the impact of popular television shows such as “Smash” and movies such as “Pitch Perfect.” Broadway musicals were my secret indulgence, not to be mentioned, when I was in high school. Now they’re everywhere from “Les Miz” on the silver screen to the ubiquitous “Wicked” touring companies.
And it has prompted 125 kids at Fairmont — cast, crew, orchestra — to dedicate countless hours to the April 17-20 production of “Jekyll & Hyde.” Breslin stars in the dual roles of “Jekyll & Hyde,” while Grogan is a first-time student director after countless Fairmont performances.
“I definitely think popular culture has had a huge impact on the way young people view performing arts,” said senior Holly Gyenes, who co-stars as Emma Carew, Dr. Henry Jekyll’s fiance. “TV shows such as ‘Glee’ and ‘The Sing-Off’ and the movie ‘Pitch Perfect’ have essentially made singing and theatre cool. I love that students and faculty highly regard and appreciate the performing arts department here at Fairmont. We all put in a huge amount of time and work, but in the end, the result is so rewarding.”
Concurred Kristen Menke, who co-stars as warm-hearted prostitute Lucy Harris, concurred the popular TV shows “have taught kids to accept each other for all the quirks and hidden talents they have. People are beginning to accept one another for all the unique qualities a person has. Kids don’t have to hide their love for performing. In fact, it is encouraged that they embrace all their talents. It is so incredible that kids don’t have to be ashamed of loving to sing any more.”
Far from it. Many of these kids are parlaying their theatrical talents into other venues. Grogan, for instance, is student body president, while Breslin is in charge of morning announcements. “The music program is a great way to become connected at Fairmont,” said Grogan, a spirited and versatile actress, has gained confidence from many years on the stage, beginning with Kettering Children’s Theatre when she was 9 years old. She has received a scholarship to the prestigious Tisch School of the Arts at New York University where she will study acting in the fall.
This is the third leading role in a Fairmont musical for Breslin, a senior, who garnered raves for last year’s performance as Jean Valjean in “Les Miz.” He’s so serious about his acting that he prepared for the role of Valjean by walking barefoot to school and camping out in his back yard. This year he faces an even more daunting challenge: playing the tormented Jekyll and the devilish Hyde. In one scene, he even sings a duet with himself. “I kicked a lot of things and punched walls to bring out that violent rage that is Hyde,” Breslin said. “You are switching back and forth in this role and it has to be seamless.”
He is fiendishly good at it, which should come as no surprise to anyone who has followed Breslin’s Fairmont career. His magnificent tenor is paired with emotionally-nuanced acting, on display this past fall with his devastating portrayal of the suicidal teen in “Ordinary People.”
He’s so gifted I’d pay to see him on Broadway tomorrow, let alone 10 years from now, yet what is his ultimate dream? Screenwriting and directing. Breslin got hooked on films in the third grade, after watching “Gremlins” and becoming mightily impressed with all the gore and special effects.
These days, he still loves acting, “but what’s cool to me is the director’s vision,” Breslin said. “You’re in control of this whole world. As a writer you create the characters and as a director you guide them.”
Whatever these talented kids end up doing, I love witnessing that sense of exploration as they plumb the depths of their characters — and themselves. Grogan, a first-time student director with “Jekyll & Hyde,” is glad she’s being stretched by an intense, PG-13 show. “I’m glad that our directors choose shows that are challenging and have a lot of emotion versus doing the cutesie shows I love,” she said. “I have grown so much.”
Acting, when I think about it, represents that first step toward maturity — learning to look at the world through the eyes of someone else. Menke plays a prostitute “who wants a better life for herself but can’t achieve it, because she’s already in too deep,” she said. “She has such a big heart and just wants to be loved, so when she encounters Jekyll, who just wants to be her friend and doesn’t take advantage of her, she instantly falls in love with him.”
Paula Powell, director of the April 19-20 production of “Godspell” at Stivers School for the Arts, also believes that shows such as”Glee” have increased the popularity of the performing arts among high school students. “While these shows are far-fetched and funny, they also highlight what these kids go through.”
As a result, she said, high school musicals have much more panache than when she graduated from high school in 1983. “It brings everybody together, from the jocks to the musicians,” she said. “Everybody wants to be part of it.” In the Dayton area, the “Glee” factor has been intensified by the success of the annual city-wide MUSE Machine musical.
Stivers junior Philip Stock, who portrays Jesus in “Godspell,” said that shows like “Smash” and “Glee” deserve credit for “portraying theater people as complex people and not just nerds.”
But the trend, he hopes, goes beyond that. “It’s not necessarily just about theater kids,” he said. “It means that for kids today, it’s cool to find out what you’re good at, whatever that might be.”
About the Author