By Emma Russell and Jude Souazoube
Elm Copyeditor and Staff Writer
Audience members packed Tawes Experimental Theater on March 2, 3, and 4 at 7:30 p.m. to catch the Department of Theatre and Dance and Department of Music’s joint production of the classic show “Once Upon A Mattress.”
Directed by Professor of Theatre, Director of the Daniel Z. Gibson Center for the Arts, and Head of the Department of Theatre and Dance Dale Daigle, the musical, which is a comedic retelling of “The Princess and the Pea” fairytale, tells the story of a fictional medieval kingdom where Queen Aggravian, played by senior Lexi Meola, declares that nobody is allowed to marry until her son Prince Dauntless, played by junior Jude Souazoube, does.
However, the Queen creates tests that are impossible to pass, leading to the frustration of characters Lady Larkin and Sir Harry, played by freshmen Jaya Basu and Brandon Edgerly. Ser Harry goes on a quest to find a princess suitable for marriage and finds Princess Winifred, known as ‘Fred,’ played by sophomore Maddi Mulder who, much to the Queen’s distaste, passes all the tests with ease.
The musical featured a blend of traditional Broadway-style music and jazz. Music major and junior Kaitlyn McCaffrey served as conductor and co-music director. McCaffrey’s job consisted of helping performers learn their songs and guiding them once they were on stage.
“Singing can be intimidating, especially if you haven’t really done it before…so it’s [about] finding the character and then exuding that in the musicality,” McCaffrey said.
For many members of the cast this was either their first show at Washington College, or their first musical.
The latter was the case for senior Adam Brown who played First Knight.
“I never really had to follow a script [before] so that was different and trying to meld into a character as opposed to just being on stage as me was probably the biggest change,” Brown said. Everyone that has been involved in the production here have been super welcoming.”
Though the show was created in the late 50s, Visiting Assistant Professor of Music Ernie Green, who served as music director, believed the musical still has qualities fitting for a contemporary audience.
“I wanted to do something more golden age musical style,” Green said. “I’ve done [this show] a couple of times before and it was a show I remember everyone having a tremendous amount of fun with.”
The audience joined in on the fun too, with each sold-out performance ending in a standing ovation.
Students who had experience on the WC stage were shocked by the turn out. Senior Sharon Niedringhaus, who played Princess #12 and Ensemble, was in The Who’s “Tommy” her freshman year and was glad to be part of a musical her graduating year, especially one that was so well received by the local community.
“[Productions] are definitely better when you have the audience reacting so that you can play off of that energy,” Niedringhaus said.
Junior Abigail Collins, who attended the performance on opening night with a group friends, said she had fun watching the show, which she said was “cute.”
“‘Once Upon A Mattress’ was full of life. The cast and directors seemed to love the story and each other, which made for a great time,” Collins said.
“I love watching the students come in [to see the shows]… there is such a connectivity between the students on campus,” Green said. “I think for me and everyone in the cast [the show] has been rewarding… there has been tremendous growth.”
For those interested in seeing more shows, “Grendel,” a playwriting Senior Capstone Experience by senior Sophia Rooks will be performed in Tawes Theater on March 31 and April 1 at 7:30 p.m.
More information about upcoming theatre performances can be found on the Department of Theatre and Dance’s page on the College’s website.
Photo courtesy of Lexi Meola
Photo Caption: During intermission, the Wizard, played by senior Dylan Snow, entertained the audience with tricks.