March 8, 2013
Dear Parents, Family and Friends:
Thank you so much for coming to see Jekyll & Hyde! An all-time favorite of mine, it attracted legions of fans before its smash-hit Broadway run in 1997, due to its evocative, gorgeous musical score and dramatic characters. It has since seen countless tours, worldwide fame and will haveanother Broadway revival next month!
A tale of good and evil, Jekyll & Hyde is based on Robert Louis Stevenson's classic story about a doctor whose self-experiments with the mind create a murderous counterpart. Dr. Jekyll unwittingly unleashes his own dark side, wreaking havoc in the streets of London as the maniacal Edward Hyde.
An admittedly ambitious and sophisticated musical for middle school, we were able to direct our young cast to bring to vivid life this dark story, by collaboratively engaging them to interpret and grow through teamwork, song, dance and theater.
This year we are forging ahead without our leader, Lynne Ferrier or Albert Catasus, our Scenic Designer, and without Christina Moore, our Choreographer. We miss you and wish you the best. But forge ahead we did! Jessica Ng lead the charge with the Kiwanis Club and her Tech Crew, overseeing lighting and sound design. Jennifer Muselli, who, understanding the importance of dialogue and song interpretation, ensured our cast knew their lines! Breena Ross, Rose LanFranchi and their Costume Team designed, shopped for and sewed our beautiful costumes. Mr. Joseph Adinolfi skillfully directed the music for this complicated, soulful musical masterpiece.
Welcome Eileen Cullen, Duanna Kempton and their team of Artists and Set Crew, who designed and painted our London backdrops and Victorian set pieces.And Tanja Larsen, our Choreographer, who crafted suspenseful dance pieces.
We could not do this without our Assistant Principals Mary Lane-Citlak and William Nicoll, who handled every single issue efficiently and stayed way past school hours. They supported us every step of the way. We had the help of many caring parents to shop, build, encourage, supervise and lovingly support. Chief among them: Karen Foppiani, Mary LaRosa, Junko Kotake, Brian Doherty and Barbara Cassidy. Shout out to alumni parent, Fran Gillen, who volunteers to oversee tickets with the help of Parent Coordinator Carla Palumbo. Mr. Justin Berman! How lucky are we to have you, a Principal who understands sound and light design??? Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
And finally, Students, for your time, patience, love of theater, talent and endurance! It was sucha pleasure working with you.
- Susan Huizinga, Director
