DIRECTORS NOTES
When I was young, my dad had a reel-to-reel tape player. He had so much music, but he would play the recordings of both The Music Man, and Godspell constantly. I spent many hours lying on the carpet, watching the reels turn and listening to the music. It's no wonder I got into theatre at a young age!
I have always loved Godspell, and appreciated its deception. It looks fun, light, silly, and easy, but I can assure you, it is everything but that. I've seen great productions of this show, and some not so great productions, but the music always got to me. With this show based on the stories from the Bible, specifically the book of Matthew, I always thought it might be a dubious choice for a musical at a public high school. Then I decided to take a closer look.
This story, while yes, has Jesus and Judas in it, is not as much about just religion as I thought it was. While I am not a particularly religious person, having lived on three continents and having been raised by devout Catholics, my exposure to religion has been rich and broad. I have always highly respected the ideals of faith, the stories of belief, and people who live according to the lessons taught. This show, however, isn't as much about Christianity as it is, instead, about parables, stories, and celebrations of things that often seem missing in our current social climate: community, acceptance, forgiveness, love, being a good person, and tolerance. Once I realized this, I threw myself into the research, desperate to bring this to our stage.
I can honestly say that I have never researched a musical as much as I have this one. Knowing that this show is harder than it looks, I didn't want to mount a version that even slightly reminded me of some of the more lifeless productions that I have seen in the past. I wanted the audience to feel the music and hear the stories the same way I did, regardless of faith, religion, spirituality. In order to do that, the whole cast had to be on board. We have the most amazing group of students who have come together to embody the idea of this show: community, support, respect, and fun. This is our smallest musical ever, and the courage that it has taken for them to put themselves out there, trust me in some crazy ideas, and have no ensemble to hide behind, is abslutely astounding.
From students who live and breathe musical theatre, to those who never thought they would BE in a musical, their willingness to lay it all out, tell these stories, and literally PLAY is one of the best gifts. I hope that you, in whatever capacity that you're seeing this show, enjoy yourself half as much as we did as we discovered this world.
Peace, Love, and Swingsets,
Stacy Castiglione
PS- I write this addendum from a hospital room in Virginia. I have to say goodbye to my mother, who seems to finally be at peace after suffering from the effects of a catastophic stroke she had when I was a teenager. While her release from her pain gives me great comfort, saying goodbye is heart-breaking. The most amazing part of this is the village around me. I left CA on Veteren's Day to be with my brother and mother, and immediately, this show was surrounded by love and help and things that I could not have even asked for. As I sit here, pondering all that is unfolding in front of me, I see the true meaning of this show, these songs, and these stories. My incredible team, cast, family, and friends are making sure that the show goes on. I could not be more proud of our students and their willingness and ability to rise and thrive. I am humbled and heartened and truly grateful. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
