Looking back days after the this year’s production from WHS, it is easier to see moments in the production that symbolized all that we really yearn for in a holiday- comradary, trust, banding together, and just that human element that makes positive change in light of bad situations that can, and often do, exist around us.
As mentioned in the first part of this reviewed post, there, is MUCH to make the holidays better, if we allow ourselves to be part of that process and seek the positivity to spread among others. There might not be a very apparent Santa Clause, reindeer, or elves presents, but not what you SEE, but what you FEEL brings the true meaning of holidays closer to your heart. That was true in this production as well. Alas, onto the one-liners of Kudos to those who made this year’s production a possiblity:
Kelsey (Pigtails/Olive) – I have to be honest, for the first time of noticing Kelsey in a production, her energy and presence is hard to miss, and she was an integral, visible part of the feel you received from the Newsies Jr., production overall.
Keegan (Romeo/Bill) – A familiar face as you might have seen his brother in former productions and yet, his willingness to play a part (no pun), throw himself into a role, and continue to grow as an actor goes with the tradition of seeing another Morehouse on stage and bringing a sense of dedication to a production.
Jordyn (Specs) – Jordyn always has this smile and sense of positivity outside of the stage and you see this as well on stage, just as you did in Elf and anything she throws herself into; that being said, it was awesome to see her same positivity on stage front and center at various times during ths prodcution.
Rylee (Nancy) – You can sense someone wanting to be part of something and see it in their movements, facial expressions, dedication to lines and plot, the whole bit and well, there you have everything you need to know if you were lucky enough to see Rylee in this production!
Maci (Tommy Boy) – Maci did a great job of representing an initial opposing faction to the newsies and fit right into perfectrly to the plot of this production, who only added to the feeliing of power when a group comes together.
Ruth (Seitz)- I am not sure anyone else could pull off the mundance feeling is was to work for Pulitzer than Ruth, which she did to a “T” and is awesome to see someone, camera-shy like Ruth, take a risk and do the stage, for a return performance- GO Ruth!
Kaleb (Snyder) – It was a riot to see someone zoom across the stage in an overcoat and everyone fleeing from that person in the overcoat and it just worked with Kaleb doing so- and doing so like Speedy Gonzalez!
Emma (Hannah/Aida) – Emma has the energy and ability to be one or another throughout and it is great to be able to see her back on the stage among others making Newsies, Jr. heartfelt, from the stage in the production, to the stage we witnessed this production!
Aolani (Ethel) – It was great to see a high spirited Aolani in her first production and putting herself into two differing parts of the production, which will hopefully lead her to future productions bringing in a new wave of actors for WHS!
Elli (Ensemble) – While among many of the above also were in ensemble, it was hard to not notice a new face in Elli and realize the more new faces we saw, the more rich the ensemble and support for all the characters were with their energy all combined.
Adria (Dorothy) – It was awesome to see Adia again in another production and she has made leaps and bounds with her progress with her walking, all adding to the confidence we saw in her on stage in this production!
Dakota (Ensemble) – It was exciting to see a new face on stage, a familiar face around school, and a spirited member of this cast in many scenes of Newsies, Jr!
Giomari ( Ensemble) – Again, while we saw many new faces we never saw before, Giomari’s energy reinforced how powerful it was when all veteran and new actors/actresses came together as one in this produc tion as Giomari reinforced this!
Mr. Truitt (Theodore Roosevelt) – As always, anytime a cast member/staff member is able to be part of a production, it only enhances the overall feeling and depth of a production, as this was no exception!
Whether you realized it or not, the alumni that comes backs such as Te’Neal, Madison, Tori, and Carly, as well as the endless hours squeezed in around the regular school day from Ms. Workman and Ms Jones are the backbone of any production you see, hear, and feel on any given day. You see the long hours and how it tests the whole cast through the whole process every year and it is amazing to be able to see the ifnal product as a result. Kudos to them all!
There are so many people that attended that help make up the set, the sound, the resources that add and enhance the stage, nourish the cast, and keep them motivated to put on their best in such a short amount of time. THEN going on after the offical days to present to elementary schools is also a HUGE part of this overall production. The elements you can’t see let you take home the feeling and memories of ebery production that often are too difficult to put into words.
Remember that preproduction picture of our lone Christmas tree and decorator? Now take a look at what we have?
Amazing, right? But when you think about it, not amazing at all when everyone comes together 🙂
As always, this was an amazing way to usher in the holidays and welcome the spirit of unity that should be at the heart of every thing we do during this season!
PAVEing a Blog 