Perfect in every way
By JULIANA SCARPELLI
COLONIE — Colonie Central High School students are hard at work preparing for Line ‘n Cue’s upcoming production of Mary Poppins, running Thursday, March 13, through Saturday, March 15, in the Mark Cornell Auditorium at Colonie Central High School.
Several seniors involved in all facets of the show took a break to discuss the play and their role in it.
Eliza Irons, who is playing Mary Poppins, is most excited for the audience to see the special effects in the show.
“I think flying will be my favorite part, because when we do it, the audience has the biggest reactions and it’s just a really fun part of the show,” Irons said. “A lot of our audience is kids, and when they see the flying, of course they get excited about it too. That makes it worth it.”
Val Monington is playing George Banks in the show, and they also have a role in the production crew.
“When you’re in the crew, you’re constantly doing something, you have somewhere to be and have a job to do,” Monington said. “When I was in the ensemble a few years ago, I kind of felt like I could just hang out in the back until it was my time to shine. When you’re in the crew, it’s always your time to shine, even if it doesn’t feel like that.”
Alyssa Molnar is the assistant producer of the show, so she gets to take on more of a leadership role.
“I make the play bill with Mrs. V. and during the show, we sell flowers, we do ticket sales, there’s concessions, there’s raffles, T-shirts, I deal with all of that,” Molnar said. “I have my own crew that work alongside me to help manage all of that.”
Mrs. V is Susan Vatalaro, co-director and producer of the show.
Principal dancer and Miss Andrew in the show, LilyAnne Wickham, says that the audience should expect some incredible dance numbers.
“The dance numbers, especially “Step in Time” because it’s a tap dance number, I think it’s gonna be fantastic,” Wickham said. “That’s my favorite part of the show.”
Keira Hughes, props manager, is a huge part of the magic behind the scenes.
“Anything that the actors will be holding or using on stage I am in charge of making or acquiring, and then making sure it is on stage at the right time,” Hughes said.
Stage manager Neala Hughes – no relation to Keira — enjoys working to her castmates’ strengths.
“I go through the script with Mrs. V, and we block out all scene changes,” said stage manager Hughes. “I love getting to work with all the kids and giving them jobs that work with what they’re good at.”
Co-director and producer Vatalaro – Mrs. V., that is – is excited for the community to see what the students have been working on.
“They’re an amazing group of very talented performers and students and it’s just such a joy to be with them every day,” Vatalaro said. “They take their roles so seriously and they prepare so well, but we always manage to have a lot of fun and laughs.”
The show will run for four performances, beginning on Thursday, March 13, at 7 p.m. Additional performances are scheduled for Friday, March 14, at 7 p.m., followed by two shows on Saturday, March 15, at 1 p.m. and 7 p.m.
Tickets will be $12 for general admission and $8 for students and senior citizens. They can be bought at the door or online through Go Fan which will be set up shortly. You can also keep up with Line n’ Cue through Instagram @cchs_line.n.cue, or TikTok @cchs_linencue.
“They really own this show and make it their own and I’m just so proud of them,” Vatalaro said.
Please consider supporting us to access our online content and receive ongoing coverage of news that affects you.
