Celebrating distinction in
High School Musical Theatre

2012-2013 Jester Award Honorees

The results are in and Music Theatre of Wichita’s Jester Award recipients have been announced for the 2012-13 school year!

During the past nine months, MTWichita judges were invited to review a total of 31 musical theater productions from 27 area schools plus a combined production from Wichita USD 259.  The abundant talent shown throughout south central Kansas once again proved to be inspirational and exciting!

The Jester Awards Ceremony was held Friday, May 17th at The Orpheum Theatre.  The fast-paced program included highlights from several highly nominated shows, plus special performances by outstanding actor and actress nominees.

In addition to the Jester Awards given out, Trevor McChristian of Maize High School and Sophia Macias of Goddard Hish School were selected to represent MTWichita at the National High School Musical Theater Awards, held at the Minskoff Theatre on Broadway on July 1 along with being awarded $1,000 scholarships.

Overall Production
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat – El Dorado HS
Fiddler on the Roof – Trinity Academy

Direction of Show
Greg Bontrager – All Shook Up! – Buhler HS
Katie Banks-Todd – Joseph and the Amazing
Technicolor Dreamcoat – El Dorado HS

Leading Actress
Abbey Pickering (The Witch) – Into the Woods – Clearwater HS
Johanna Pfaff (Millie) – Thoroughly Modern Millie – Eisenhower HS
Sophia Macias (Belle) – Beauty and the Beast – Goddard HS

Leading Actor
Jake Dutton (Curly) – Oklahoma! – Andover HS
Gage Reynolds (Joseph) – Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat – El Dorado HS
Trevor McChristian (Finch) – How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying – Maize HS
Carlton Ryker (Tevye) – Fiddler on the Roof – Trinity Academy

Supporting Actress
Sydnie Randolph (Babette) – Beauty and the Beast – Goddard HS
Monica Morris (Motormouth Maybelle) – Hairspray – Wichita East HS
Hannah Wagner (Penny Pingleton) – Hairspray – Wichita East HS
Gabrielle Alexander (Ursula) – Bye Bye Birdie – Wichita USD 259

Supporting Actor
Cameron Knipp (King Sextimus) – Once Upon a Mattress – Bishop Carroll HS
Noah Montgomery (Prez) – The Pajama Game – Kapaun Mt. Carmel HS
Jesse Cockrell (Snail) – A Year With Frog and Toad – Russell HS
Rob Egan (Lionel) – Cinderella – Wichita Collegiate
Jesse Skupa (Harry MacAfee) – Bye Bye Birdie – Wichita USD 259

Cameo Performer
Braden Morrison (Chip) – Beauty and the Beast – Goddard HS

Teacher/Alumnus Performer
Vincent Pray (Joe Boyd) – Damn Yankees – Augusta HS

Instrumental Performer
Jacob Oare (The Fiddler) – Fiddler on the Roof – Trinity Academy

Ensemble/Chorus
All Shook Up! – Buhler HS
Li’l Abner – Hays HS
Side by Side by Sondheim – Kapaun Mt. Carmel HS

Small Ensemble
The Eleven Brothers – Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat – El Dorado HS
Gladys and the “Steam Heat” Girls – The Pajama Game – Kapaun Mt. Carmel HS

Production Number
The Small House of Uncle Thomas – The King and I – Campus HS
Hernando’s Hideaway – The Pajama Game – Kapaun Mt. Carmel HS
Brotherhood of Man – How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying – Maize HS
76 Trombones – The Music Man – Sterling HS
Tradition – Fiddler on the Roof – Trinity Academy

Orchestra
Rich Toevs – All Shook Up! – Buhler HS
Jeff Garriott – HONK! – Circle HS
Johnny Matlock – Li’l Abner – Hays HS
Jenni Kelley – Bells are Ringing – Sunrise Christian Academy

Musical Direction
Katie Banks-Todd – Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat – El Dorado HS
Johnny Matlock – Li’l Abner – Hays HS
Doris Prater – How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying – Maize HS

Choreography/Staging
Sadie Jones, Candace Miller, and Lauren Dunning – All Shook Up!! – Buhler HS
Jonathan Warren – Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat – El Dorado HS
Sterling Choreography Team (McKenzie Thrasher, Betsy Dutton, Kaci Hasting, Ryan Ehresman, Anna Brashear, Hannah
Hentricks, Kaci Wilson) – The Music Man – Sterling HS

Stage Crew
Beauty and the Beast – Douglass HS
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat – El Dorado HS
The Pajama Game – Kapaun Mt. Carmel HS
Hairspray – Wichita East HS

Technical Achievement
Joe Asbridge – Cinderella – Wichita Collegiate

Scenic Design
Kim Raisco and Tammy Rink – Beauty and the Beast – Douglass HS
Kathleen Barbara – How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying – Maize HS
Dan Harmon – Fiddler on the Roof – Trinity Academy
Zoë Studebaker and Derrick Gronewold – Hairspray – Wichita East HS

Costumes
Jonathan Melugin and Kaitlin Keazer – The King and I – Campus HS
Sharon Funk – Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat – El Dorado HS
Emily Ottaway – The Boy Friend – The Independent School
Cassandra Conley – Seussical the Musical – Newton HS

Lighting
Arthur Reese – Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat – El Dorado HS
Lester Cheng and Julian Garcia-Goodwin – Hairspray – Wichita East HS

Sound
James Hays – Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat – El Dorado HS
Cody Buettgenbach – Fiddler on the Roof – Trinity Academy

Graphic Design
Codey Davis and Emily Ottaway – The Boy Friend – The Independent School
Artem Shukaev – Hairspray – Wichita East HS

Lobby Display
Kim Fraley and Cassie Caster – Beauty and the Beast – Douglass HS
Stacy Berens, Russ Koenigsman, Penny McGinnis, Lisa Schreck – Li’l Abner – Hays HS
Vivian Truong and Aleena Waren – The Pajama Game – Kapaun Mt. Carmel HS

Special invitation to the National High School Musical Theater Awards goes to Sophia Macias (Goddard HS) and Trevor
McChristian (Maize HS)

Performing Interns

Ian Cummings	Dylan Harris	Faith Northcutt	Maddie Razook

We have finally finished this long process, and we are pleased to invite the following Teens and Kids to perform with us in the following capacities.

Please email josh@mtwichita.org, if you have not already done so, and let us know if you can join us.

Please do check all the categories, as more names have been added to each show.

If you are interested in Teen Choir, please review all rules and schedules.

And thanks again for sharing your time and talents with us!

Wayne Bryan                                      Nancy Reeves                                                 Joshua Larson
Producing Artistic Director                Prod. Assoc. / Co. Manager                Teen Choir Director

PERFORMING INTERNS

Ian Paul Cummings – Les Mis
Dylan Harris – Les Mis, Mary Poppins
Faith Northcutt – The King and I, Mary Poppins
Maddie Razook – Les Miserables, The King and I

LES MISERABLES – reh. June 13, plays June 26-30
Ze’ev Barmor (Gavroche)
Emma Boyle (Young Cosette)
Hannah Kintzel (Young Eponine)
Ari Barmor (and Gavroche understudy)
Brianna Bombardier (and Eponine understudy)
Caroline Elser
Hailey Faust
Tyler Faust
Zoe Corrigan
Katie M. Crandall
Micaela Heinrich
Brittnee Hill
Jordan Himes
Ben Maier
Sally Olmstead
Carlton Ryker
Francie Robu (and Cosette understudy)
Katie Shelly
Cameron Vance

THE KING AND I – reh July 1, plays July 10-14
Edward Sturm (Louis)
Timothy T.V. Cao (Prince Chulalongkorn)
Cami Abraham
Alexandra Adkins
Brydan Akin
Dominic Bacha
Ari Barmor
Hadasa Barmor
Ze’ev Barmor (and Louis understudy)
Karen Blackman
Brianna Bombardier
Teresa Collins
RuthAnne Dunn
Gabrielle Ejibe
Chase Farha
Sage Goco (as Princess Ying Yaowalak)
Ava Graves
Hannah Griffin
Mikayla Haehn
Josie Rose Hand
Camdin Hardyway
Ali Jargo
Kiley Jargo
Abby Jolicoeur
Alysha Keck
Gretchen Keck
Nathan Keck
Sean Kim
Sueah Kim
Lily Kovar
Catherine Madison
Madyson McNulty
Li-Ying Norlin
Andrew Perez
Emily Reese
Kathryn Valencia Rempel
Anna Shelton
Emily Smith
Laura Smith
Adelyn Stultz
Eliza Sweet
Angela Thao
Caitlin Trevino
Aailyah Williams
Johanna Yang

MARY POPPINS – reh. July 25, plays August 9-11 & 14-18
Londen Peebler (Jane Banks)
Edward Sturm (Michael Banks)
Josie Anderson
Ari Barmor (and Michael understudy)
Ze’ev Barmor (and as Young George Banks)
Talia Bauchmoyer
Mollie Beaver
Caroline Grace Boesen
Jacen Brooks
Marak Gann
Eden Hadley (and Jane understudy)
Rebecca Jensen
Sally Olmstead
Abigail Ottaway
Katie Robu
Carlton Ryker
Hailey Smith
Laura Smith
Jesse Theademan
Catherine Vessey
Peter Vessey
Sophia Vessey
Lauren Voigt
Jacob Wasson
Lillian Willis
Becca Yoder

Nominations have just been announced for Music Theatre of Wichita’s Jester Awards for the 2012-13 school year!  (One additional school has yet to be evaluated, and additional nominations may be added to the mix by the end of this week.)

During the past nine months, MTWichita judges were invited to review a total of 31 musical theatre productions from 27 area schools, plus the Wichita USD 259 combined show last fall.  The abundant talent shown throughout south central Kansas once again proved to be inspirational and exciting!

The Jester Awards Ceremony is scheduled for Friday, May 17^th at 7:00pm at The Orpheum Theatre (200 North Broadway).

Admission to the general seating event is only $10 a person, and the fast-paced program includes highlights from several highly nominated shows, plus special performances by the outstanding actor and actress nominees.  Tickets can be purchased in advance by calling the Music Theatre of Wichita Box Office at (316) 265-3107.  Tickets will also be available at the door, the night of the ceremony.

In addition to the Jester Awards which are given out, one leading actor and actress will be selected to represent MTWichita at the National High School Musical Theater Awards, held at the Minskoff Theatre on Broadway on Monday, July 1^st.

The Red Carpet Treatment!  From 6:00pm to 7:00pm on the night of the awards ceremony, there will be a special red carpet entrance for the nominees.  There will be lights and glamor as photographers compete for the best pictures, and social commentator Bonnie Bing, accompanied by Darcee Datteri, will be conducting interviews. Throughout the event, MTWichita’s Facebook page will be continually updated, and guest observers in special “Tweet Seats” in the Orpheum Balcony will be texting.

We hope to see all our friends and fans at this year’s Jester Awards Ceremony!

Overall Production
Oklahoma!		Andover HS
All Shook Up!		Buhler HS
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat		El Dorado HS
Li’l Abner		Hays HS
Side by Side by Sondheim		Kapaun Mt. Carmel HS
Fiddler on the Roof		Trinity Academy
Hairspray		Wichita East HS
Direction of Show
Greg Bontrager		All Shook Up!		Buhler HS
Linda Pyle		HONK!		Circle HS
Katie Banks-Todd		Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat		El Dorado HS
Johnny Matlock and Brenda Meder		Li’l Abner		Hays HS
Julie Longhofer		Fiddler on the Roof		Trinity Academy
Derrick Gronewold		Hairspray		Wichita East HS
Leading Actress
Abbey Pickering (The Witch)		Into the Woods		Clearwater HS
Johanna Pfaff (Millie)		Thoroughly Modern Millie		Eisenhower HS
Hannah Fry and Jessica McClure (The Narrators)		Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat		El Dorado HS
Sophia Macias (Belle)		Beauty and the Beast		Goddard HS
Rachel Walker (‘Babe’ Williams)		The Pajama Game		Kapaun Mt. Carmel HS
Becca Yoder (Rosemary)		How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying		Maize HS
Holly Atkeson (Ella)		Bells are Ringing		Sunrise Academy
Micaela Heinrich (Nina Pavlenko)		A Day in Hollywood, A Night in the Ukraine		Trinity Academy
Sarah Bousfield (Rose)		Bye Bye Birdie		Wichita USD 259
Erika Patton (Gabriella)		Disney High School Musical, Jr.		Wichita West HS
Leading Actor
Jake Dutton (Curly)		Oklahoma!		Andover HS
Cameron Knipp (Sebastian)		Disney’s The Little Mermaid, Jr.		Bishop Carroll HS
Tanner Webster (Chad)		All Shook Up!		Buhler HS
Gage Reynolds (Joseph)		Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat		El Dorado HS
Chandler Moore (Sid Sorokin)		The Pajama Game		Kapaun Mt. Carmel HS
Trevor McChristian (Finch)		How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying		Maize HS
Carlton Ryker (Serge B. Samovar)		A Day in Hollywood, A Night in the Ukraine		Trinity Academy
Carlton Ryker (Tevye)		Fiddler on the Roof		Trinity Academy
Supporting Actress
Hannah Schauf (Lady Larken)		Once Upon a Mattress		Bishop Carroll HS
Kellie Elmegreen (Lady Thiang)		King and I		Campus HS
Savanah Cramer (Muzzy)		Thoroughly Modern Millie		Eisenhower HS
Sydnie Randolph (Babette)		Beauty and the Beast		Goddard HS
Rachel Muirhead (Mammy Yokum)		Li’l Abner		Hays HS
Molly Gardner (Maisie)		The Boy Friend		The Independent School
Christy Collins (Rusty)		Footloose		Valley Center HS
Monica Morris (Motormouth Maybelle)		Hairspray		Wichita East HS
Hannah Wagner (Penny Pingleton)		Hairspray		Wichita East HS
Gabrielle Alexander (Ursula)		Bye Bye Birdie		Wichita USD 259
Callie Ogborn (Mae Peterson)		Bye Bye Birdie		Wichita USD 259
Supporting Actor
Landon Downing (Sir Harry)		Once Upon a Mattress		Bishop Carroll HS
Cameron Knipp (King Sextimus)		Once Upon a Mattress		Bishop Carroll HS
Brett Luckert (Jack)		Into the Woods		Clearwater HS
Zac Green (Lumiere)		Beauty and the Beast		Douglass HS
Matt Sigwing (Cogsworth)		Beauty and the Beast		Douglass HS
David Brink (Trevor Graydon)		Thoroughly Modern Millie		Eisenhower HS
Bryson Cole (Lumiere)		Beauty and the Beast		Goddard HS
Will Gunderson (Lord Brockhurst)		The Boy Friend		The Independent School
Noah Montgomery (Prez)		The Pajama Game		Kapaun Mt. Carmel HS
Micah Black (Schroeder)		You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown		McPherson HS
Jesse Cockrell (Snail)		A Year With Frog and Toad		Russell HS
Bryson Arnold (Willard)		Footloose		Valley Center HS
Rob Egan (Lionel)		Cinderella		Wichita Collegiate
Jacob Wasson (Link Larken)		Hairspray		Wichita East HS
Jesse Skupa (Harry MacAfee)		Bye Bye Birdie		Wichita USD 259
Cameo Performer
Erika Black (Birds)		Into the Woods		Andover Central
Braden Morrison (Chip)		Beauty and the Beast		Goddard HS
Kaitlin Mar (Pierette Dancer)		The Boy Friend		The Independent School
Molly Haines (Dove)		Cinderella		Wichita Collegiate
Teacher/AlumnusPerformer
Vincent Pray (Joe Boyd)		Damn Yankees		Augusta HS
Instrumental Performer
Jacob Oare (The Fiddler)		Fiddler on the Roof		Trinity Academy
Ensemble/Chorus
All Shook Up!		Buhler HS
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat		El Dorado HS
Li’l Abner		Hays HS
The Pajama Game		Kapaun Mt. Carmel HS
Side by Side by Sondheim		Kapaun Mt. Carmel HS
The Music Man		Sterling HS
Fiddler on the Roof		Trinity Academy
Small Ensemble
Minstrel, Jester and King		Once Upon a Mattress		Bishop Carroll HS
Ching Ho and Bun Foo		Thoroughly Modern Millie		Eisenhower HS
The Eleven Brothers		Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat		El Dorado HS
Gladys and the “Steam Heat” Girls		The Pajama Game		Kapaun Mt. Carmel HS
Barbershop Quartet		The Music Man		Sterling HS
Tzeitel, Hodel and Chava w/ Shprintze and Bielke		Fiddler on the Roof		Trinity Academy
The Stepsisters		Cinderella		Wichita Collegiate
Production Number
The Small House of Uncle Thomas		The King and I		Campus HS
A Poultry Tale		HONK!		Circle HS
Be Our Guest		Beauty and the Beast		Douglass HS
The Speed Test		Thoroughly Modern Millie		Eisenhower HS
Go Go Go Joseph		Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat		El Dorado HS
Gee, Officer Krupke		Side by Side by Sondheim		Kapaun Mt. Carmel HS
Gotta Have a Gimmick		Side by Side by Sondheim		Kapaun Mt. Carmel HS
Hernando’s Hideaway		The Pajama Game		Kapaun Mt. Carmel HS
Brotherhood of Man		How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying		Maize HS
The Book Report		You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown		McPherson HS
76 Trombones		The Music Man		Sterling HS
Tradition		Fiddler on the Roof		Trinity Academy
You Can’t Stop the Beat		Hairspray		Wichita East HS
The Telephone Hour		Bye Bye Birdie		Wichita USD 259
Orchestra
Ray Linville		Oklahoma!		Andover HS
Rich Toevs		All Shook Up!		Buhler HS
Jeff Garriott		HONK!		Circle HS
Johnny Matlock		Li’l Abner		Hays HS
Matt Hanne		The Boy Friend		The Independent School
Doris Prater		How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying		Maize HS
Jenni Kelley		Bells are Ringing		Sunrise Christian Academy
Dr. Cecil Riney		Fiddler on the Roof		Trinity Academy
Doug Riney		Hairspray		Wichita East HS
Musical Direction
Rich Toevs		All Shook Up!		Buhler HS
Katie Banks-Todd		Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat		El Dorado HS
Johnny Matlock		Li’l Abner		Hays HS
Doris Prater		How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying		Maize HS
Michelle Henderson		Fiddler on the Roof		Trinity Academy
Doug Riney		Hairspray		Wichita East HS
Choreography/Staging
Sadie Jones, Candace Miller, and Lauren Dunning		All Shook Up!!		Buhler HS
Deanne Zogleman		The King and I		Campus HS
Linda Pyle		HONK!		Circle HS
Jonathan Warren		Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat		El Dorado HS
Joshua Larson		The Boy Friend		The Independent School
Kristina Sims		How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying		Maize HS
Choreography Team (McKenzie Thrasher, Betsy Dutton, Kaci Hasting, Ryan Ehresman, Anna Brashear, Hannah Hentricks, Kaci Wilson)		The Music Man		Sterling HS
Dr. Julie Longhofer and Yannic Dozier		Fiddler on the Roof		Trinity Academy
Hannah Wagner and Jacob Wasson		Hairspray		Wichita East HS
Stage Crew
Into the Woods		Andover Central HS
Damn Yankees		Augusta HS
All Shook Up!		Buhler HS
HONK!		Circle HS
Beauty and the Beast		Douglass HS
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat		El Dorado HS
Li’l Abner		Hays HS
The Pajama Game		Kapaun Mt. Carmel HS
Little Shop of Horrors		Pratt HS
A Year With Frog and Toad		Russell HS
Fiddler on the Roof		Trinity Academy
Cinderella		Wichita Collegiate HS
Hairspray		Wichita East HS
Technical Achievement
Candace Miller, Sadie Jones and Lauren Dunning		All Shook Up!		Buhler HS
Garrett Moody and Krysta Post		All Shook Up!		Buhler HS
Arien Chastain, Mitch Byers and Derek Simmons		All Shook Up!		Buhler HS
Kevin Morris		Into the Woods		Clearwater HS
Joe Asbridge		Cinderella		Wichita Collegiate
Scenic Design
Rachel Downs		Oklahoma!		Andover HS
Adam Whittredge		Into the Woods		Andover Central HS
Dan Williams		All Shook Up!		Buhler HS
Matt Charboneau and Stagecraft Class		The King and I		Campus HS
Kim Raisco and Tammy Rink		Beauty and the Beast		Douglass HS
Bruce Givens and Katie Banks-Todd		Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat		El Dorado HS
Alberto Martinez		Side by Side by Sondheim		Kapaun Mt. Carmel HS
Kathleen Barbara		How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying		Maize HS
Greg McGlynn and the Stagecraft Class		You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown		McPherson HS
Cassandra Conley		Seussical the Musical		Newton HS
Dan Harmon		Fiddler on the Roof		Trinity Academy
Mark Scheltgen		Cinderella		Wichita Collegiate
Zoë Studebaker and Derrick Gronewold		Hairspray		Wichita East HS
Costumes
Brona LaForce		All Shook Up!		Buhler HS
Jonathan Melugin and Kaitlin Keazer		The King and I		Campus HS
Kinsey McDaniel		Into the Woods		Clearwater HS
Kim Raisco and Tammy Rink		Beauty and the Beast		Douglass HS
Sharon Funk		Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat		El Dorado HS
Bryson Cole/Riley Sterns		Beauty and the Beast		Goddard HS
Emily Ottaway		The Boy Friend		The Independent School
Cassandra Conley		Seussical the Musical		Newton HS
Betsy Dutton, Kristi Wilson, Christy Schweitzer		The Music Man		Sterling HS
Joni Simonsen		Cinderella		Wichita Collegiate
Lighting
Arthur Reese		Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat		El Dorado HS
Maddie Nevins		How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying		Maize HS
Cassandra Conley		Seussical the Musical		Newton HS
Stan Longhofer		Fiddler on the Roof		Trinity Academy
Lester Cheng and Julian Garcia-Goodwin		Hairspray		Wichita East HS
Sound
James Hays		Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat		El Dorado HS
Jeremy Wann		Li’l Abner		Hays HS
Tyler Cordell		You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown		McPherson HS
Cody Buettgenbach		Fiddler on the Roof		Trinity Academy
Mark Scheltgen and Joe Asbridge		Cinderella		Wichita Collegiate
Graphic Design
Sheri Cunningham		All Shook Up!		Buhler HS
Dena Sizemore		Beauty and the Beast		Douglass HS
Codey Davis and Emily Ottaway		The Boy Friend		The Independent School
Linda Werhan		Fiddler on the Roof		Trinity Academy
Artem Shukaev		Hairspray		Wichita East HS
Mandy Call		Bye Bye Birdie		Wichita USD 259
Lobby Display
Christina Cox		Damn Yankees		Augusta HS
Cast Parents		All Shook Up!		Buhler HS
Rebecca Guiltner		Into the Woods		Clearwater HS
Kim Fraley and Cassie Caster		Beauty and the Beast		Douglass HS
Stacy Berens, Russ Koenigsman,Penny McGinnis, Lisa Schreck		Li’l Abner		Hays HS
TIS Camera Club and Debra Cole		The Boy Friend		The Independent School
Vivian Truong and Aleena Waren		The Pajama Game		Kapaun Mt. Carmel HS
Technical Theatre Class		Seussical the Musical		Newton HS
Deb Shelly and Celinda Heinrich		A Day in Hollywood, A Night in the Ukraine		Trinity Academy
Freshman Parents		Cinderella		Wichita Collegiate
Julie and Rob Rippy		Hairspray		Wichita East HS

“Follow your grail!”

We saw wonderful talents during our six-city audition tour.

We have now offered positions to a number of artists, and most of them are able to join us. Our resident company, as it is shaping up, is listed below. (An asterisk indicates an actor has accepted the offer.)

Numbers listed after each name indicate what shows the artist is scheduled to appear in:  1 – SPAMALOT, 2 – LES MIS, 3 – THE KING AND I, 4 – BETTY BLUE EYES, 5 – MARY POPPINS.

Our Guest Stars in leading roles will be announced shortly.

Thanks to each and every person who came in and auditioned for us.  The breadth and scope of your talent and enthusiasm is very inspiring for us.  If we don’t have a chance to work with you this year, please know we very much look forward to seeing you again in the future, when a new assortment of requirements will guide the formation of another brilliant resident company.

LADIES
Kathryn Boswell *       (2,3,4,5)  (inc. Cosette)
Kimberly Corbett *      (2,3,4,5)
Darcee Datteri *           (4)
Eleanor Fishman *      (2,3,4,5)  (inc. Fantine)
Hannah Freeman *     (1,2,3,4,5)  (inc. Mrs. Corry)
Rebecca Gans *           (2,3,4,5)  (inc. Topsy)
Claire Gerig *               (2,3,4,5)  (inc. Winnifred Banks)
Catherine Helm *        (2,3,4,5)
Emily Kelly *                (1,2,3,4,5)
Brooke Lacy *               (1,2,3,4,5)
Carolyn Miller *           (2,3,4,5)   (inc. Eponine)
Faith Northcutt *         (3,5 – intern)
Becca Peterson *          (1,2,3,4,5)
Sarah Quinn *              (1,2,3,4,5)
Maddie Razook *         (2,3 – intern)
Lynnette V. Rempel *  (3)
Riza Takahashi *          (1,2,3,4,5)
Katie Wesler *              (1,2,3,4,5)
Hayley Wilhelm *        (2,3,4,5)
Sumire Yu *                  (2,3,4,5)

GENTLEMEN
Robert Ariza *             (2,3,4,5)
Daniel Beeman *         (2,3,4,5)
Daniel Bevins *            (1,2,3,4,5)
Jacob Chancellor *      (1,2,3,4,5)
Ian Cummings *           (2 – intern)
Jordan De Leon *        (2,3)
Caleb Dicke *                (1,2,3,4,5)
Dylan Harris *              (2,5 – intern)
Michael Hartung *       (1,2,3,4,5)  (inc. King Simon)
Dan Horn *                    (1,2,3,4,5)
Elliott Mattox *             (2,3,4,5)   (inc. Robertson Ay)
Evan Mayer *                 (2,3,4,5)
Trevor McChristian *   (2,3,4,5)
Alex Miller *                  (2,3,4,5)
Chet Norment *            (2,3,4,5)
Nick Palmquist *          (1,2,3,4,5)
Harry Perrin *               (3)
Jackson Perrin *           (3)
Benjamin Rivera *        (1,2,3,4,5)
Sean Ronayne *             (2,3,4,5) (inc. Enjolras)
Andy Tofa *                    (2,3,4,5)
Zack Wilhelm *             (2,3,4,5)

Thanks again

OMG u guyz, like “Legally Blonde: The Musical” is so totally LOL.

It’s also very, very pink — as in cheerful and chipper with a rosy, romantic outlook, as well as the wardrobe and decor of the main character, Elle Woods, a sun-kissed California sorority fashionista who gets dissed, gets dumped, gets mad and gets even by taking Harvard Law School by storm to prove that brains and beauty are not mutually exclusive.

This breezy new musical, based on the Amanda Brown novel and the Reese Witherspoon movie, caps the 41st season for Music Theatre of Wichita, and it’s a wonderfully silly bit of escapism on a hot summer night. To be sure, there’s an underlying message about empowerment of women in a male-dominated field, but the flash and the fluff linger longer in your mind.

Directed by Wayne Bryan, who is finishing up his 25th year as producing artistic director, the show is big and gaudy with dozens of set pieces designed by J Branson silently zooming, flying and turning into place to create scenes from a sorority house to a beauty salon, from the halls of academe at Harvard to a courtroom — not to mention Elle’s campus apartment tastefully done in every shade of pink you can imagine.

And the costumes by Leon Dobkowski (who created the shimmery fantasies for last summer’s “Disney’s The Little Mermaid”) seem more like bold fashion statements you might actually see on the street rather than just on stage.

The songs by Laurence O’Keefe and Nell Benjamin are light, bouncy and serviceable — if not particularly memorable — from the satirically sexy “Bend and Snap” to the rallying “Chip on My Shoulder” to the earnest “Gonna Find My Way.” The dialogue by Heather Hach is sharp, tart and often hilarious.

Anne Horak is appropriately perky and deliciously direct as Elle, a Malibu native who never suffered a setback in her golden life until her snooty boyfriend, Warner Huntington III (handsome, pleasantly voiced Ryan Vasquez), dumps her when heading off to Harvard Law and declaring that she’s “not serious” enough to be his perfect mate. Horak, familiar from many past shows (most recently as glamorous barracuda Lina of “Singin’ in the Rain”), is, of course, a gorgeous blonde presence. But Horak also makes Elle a sympathetic figure with feelings more complex than you might expect from such a glossy surface.

Horak’s voice is clear, strong and beautiful, but her songs are written too blandly to create any show-stopping moments.

A little luckier is Colleen Hawks, making her Music Theatre debut as Paulette, a blue-collar beautician whose earthy advice about remaining true to one’s self gives Elle inspiration and direction. Hawks’ comic and poignant “Ireland,” about holding onto a seemingly impossible dream, is a highlight.

Skyler Adams, a Music Theatre alumnus back for his first guest role, is eminently likable as Emmett, a brilliant but tweedy academic who befriends Elle at Harvard and ends up falling for her while finding his own stylish potential in her wake. His romantic duets with Elle are nicely matched.

And Matthew Shepard, best remembered as the obsessive Inspector Javert of “Les Miserables,” struts and strides his way as the arrogant, condescending and chauvinistic Professor Callahan, who delights in sneering at Elle — until he realizes what a quirkily logical, bizarrely effective force she is. Again, his musical moments are serviceable but don’t really showcase what his voice can do.

Choreography by Roger Castellano is athletic and inventive — although opening-night coordination was a little disjoined in one segment using jump ropes. The orchestra under music director Thomas W. Douglas did fine during the show, but the short overture and entr’acte seemed mushy with no distinct musical themes emerging.

The amazing thing about director/choreographer Linda Goodrich’s new production of “Singin’ in the Rain” for Music Theatre of Wichita is how picture-perfect her stage homage is to the beloved and classic 1952 movie with Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds and Donald O’Connor.

Particularly since Goodrich and her magnificent crew of singers and dancers don’t have the advantage of numerous retakes, edits, special effects or dubbing.

All of our favorite moments are there, re-created with a loving touch, from the “Good Morning” romp involving dancing all over the furniture to an expanded “Broadway Melody” that’s practically a three-act dance marathon by itself.

And, yes, Goodrich and David Elder in the Kelly role conquer the “Singin’ in the Rain” segment spectacularly, sprinkling and splashing joyfully throughout the full length of the Music Theatre stage. With sure-footed grace and boundless energy, Elder captures every nuance and detail, from jumping in puddles like an exuberant kid to leaping ecstatically onto a lamppost to proclaim his love for his lady to the world.

Elder plays Don Lockwood, a former vaudevillian turned silent-film leading man, who hits on the genius idea of becoming a musical star as the best way to make the transition to “talkies” in 1920s Hollywood. Broadway veteran Elder has matinee idol good looks and a toothpaste-ad smile as well as a lanky grace and man-for-all-seasons dancing abilities from tap to soft shoe to a touch of ballet here and there. Elder is actually Kelly 2.0 — all the athleticism (including a back flip) and style but with a stronger singing voice.

Cary Tedder plays Cosmo Brown, Don’s brash best buddy and former vaudeville dancing partner. Tedder re-creates O’Connor’s quirky “Make ’Em Laugh” production number with affectionate precision, from hilariously flirting with a stuffed dummy on a couch to doing back flips against a wall. And when Tedder joins forces with Elder for a couple of rousing tap routines (“Fit as a Fiddle,” “Moses Supposes”), they stop the show.

Keeping up with those two balls of energy are Mary Michael Patterson as Kathy Selden, an eager Hollywood ingenue who keeps Don at arm’s length but ultimately falls for the real man behind the screen image. Patterson has a fresh and lovely voice for romantic tunes like “You Are My Lucky Star” and “Would You.” She’s also a delightful presence who is enthusiastic and energetic without being stereotypically perky.

Stealing the show every time she opens her mouth is Anne Horak as glamorous silent star Lina Lamont, whose nasally Bronx-ese can shatter glass and dooms her future career in talkies. In a song not in the original movie, Horak as Lina laments to her mirror, “What’s Wrong With Me?” — and answers her own question hilariously at every turn. Horak has brilliant comic timing in a sexy package, making the contrast even funnier.

Because Lina’s voice is supposed to be terrible, Horak doesn’t get to display her normally beautiful singing voice like she did previously in “White Christmas” here. But she’ll make up for that as the lead of the next show, “Legally Blonde,” the season closer that runs Aug. 8 through 12 at Century II.

A trio of local character actors shines in minor comic turns: Bonnie Bing as a powerful gossip columnist who likes to hobnob with the stars, Charles Parker as a movie studio chief secretly cowed by one of his stars, and Timothy W. Robu as a blustery, exasperated movie director. All three inhabit their characters like easing into comfortable old shoes.

This production is seemingly one of the most technically complex for Music Theatre in recent seasons, full of beautiful 1920s sets designed by Michael Anania (enhanced by David Neville’s evocative lighting) that look more substantial than painted backdrops but appear and disappear in an instant, as if by magic. Sarah Reever’s elegantly gaudy costumes capture the reckless freedom of the period, and music director Thomas W. Douglas’ orchestra (despite a little mushiness in the overture opening night) provides energetic support befitting the kick-up-your-heels era of Charleston and tango.

Music Theatre of Wichita missed a bet by not passing out bumper stickers saying “Honk if you had fun.” Everyone opening night likely would have grabbed them up.

“HONK!” is that rare joy in theater: A perfectly safe and kid-friendly show that’s also substantial enough to keep parents and other adults engrossed and thoroughly entertained rather than just patiently biding their time until they can go home.

This hip retelling of Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Ugly Duckling” is big, bold and circussy with saturated colors to dazzle and delight young eyes running rampant through J Branson’s versatile, layered, oval-proscenium set and George T. Mitchell’s quirky animal-inspired costumes.

But there’s a sly and complex wit – not to mention outrageous puns — throughout from writer/lyricist Anthony Drewe that gives it multiple layers of meaning for different ages. And composer George Stiles whips up surprisingly sophisticated music with subtle key changes and internal pacing reminiscent of Stephen Sondheim or Andrew Lloyd Webber. Well, Drewe and Stiles are British after all and can’t help themselves.

And “HONK!” was the surprise winner for best musical of 2000 in London over both juggernauts “The Lion King” and “Mamma Mia!”

Music Theatre had the honor of creating the Midwestern premiere in 2001 and recording the first full cast album (still available worldwide). Now with this encore, MTW and director Wayne Bryan have expanded the show with a larger, more diverse (in animal terms) cast into an even richer, more delightful experience.

Interestingly, its message about being bullied for being “different” but learning to love yourself for your uniqueness is even more timely than a decade ago because society has grown more aware of the consequences of bullying. Exploring this topic as an allegory with animals makes it easier to approach.

The cast is universally strong in voice and presence, particularly Lawrence Cummings as Ugly, the gawky, gangling but optimistically curious creature at the heart of the story, and Susan Hofflander as Ida, his loving and protective mom.

Broadway/movie veteran Cummings (Sebastian in last summer’s “The Little Memaid” here) has power to spare but also interprets his songs with quiet, compelling, intimate wonder – notably his musings on being “Different.” “Different isn’t spiteful or wrong, why can’t we all just get along? Different isn’t bad (or scary, or threatening), it’s just, well, different.” He also gives soaring romantic lilt to “Now I’ve Seen You.”

Hofflander, also a Broadway veteran returning to reprise her mama role, has opera power and color but also sings with warmth that is enveloping and comforting. Her “Joy of Motherhood” in duet with the wonderful Wichita actress Karen Robu as her best friend and fellow duck mom, Maureen, is knowing fun. Her “Every Tear a Mother Cries (Is a Dream Washed Away),” is a poignant, riveting, motherly anthem that lingers long in the memory and heart.

Stanley Bahorek, a former MTW ensemble member and now Broadway performer (“The 25^th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,” the new “February House”), is deliciously despicable as the villainous Cat, who is out to make a meal of Ugly. Dressed in formal black with his hair parted in the middle and swept up to the sides as “ears,” Bahorek prances, preens and minces with poisonous charm and mock sincerity reminiscent of Tim Curry or Jim Carrey. His “You Can Play With Your Food” duet with Ugly is, well, a purr-fect romp.

The absolute scene-stealer, though, is Jody Cook in dual roles of the smug, imperious, overbearing Turkey who is secretly terrified about Thanksgiving, and the laid-back, go-with-the-flow bullfrog, who knows he’s not a prince but is happy with himself anyway. Cook, last seen here in the crime caper “Curtains,” has a booming voice that does wild things with a “gobble” or a “ribbit.” His “(Someone’s Gonna Love You) Warts and All” is a show-stopper – and later a great curtain-call finale.

Also grabbing their share of comic moments are longtime local favorite Timothy Robu, who takes a folksy Larry The Cable Guy approach to Drake, Ugly’s skeptical dad, and ensemble member Ryan Vasquez, who gives a pompous, privileged British officer spin to Greylag the Goose.

There are a lot of children in the show as critter-costumed extras — notably baby bullfrogs in the “Warts and All” number. Director Bryan ignored ancient theatrical warnings to never work with kids or animals (or kids dressed as animals) and gave them interesting things to do rather than just standing around looking cute. He also coaxed strong, uniform performances from the four ducklings who played Ugly’s yellow play-suited nest mates.

Choreographer Amy Baker created distinct movements and gestures for each of the characters to subtly enhance their animal qualities. She also paid homage to vaudeville and English music hall movements for production numbers – nostalgic and rollicking and lots of fun.

I never got his last name, but I did learn that his first name was Earl.

His wife’s name I didn’t catch. What I did discover, however, was that they’d celebrated their 50th anniversary on May 25th – “and we’ve been coming here for about 15 years,” said Earl. “It’s one of the things we look forward to most each summer.”

And get this, folks: he’s talking about seeing musicals.

Thanks to Earl and his wife, I had a much better intermission talk than the ones the on-stage theatergoers experience in Me and Juliet. But I always do when I come to Music Theatre of Wichita, where attendees are quick to spend the interval sharing their enthusiasm for what they’re seeing. It’s happened each of the eight times I’ve come to this wondrous organization that Wayne Bryan has been heading for 25 years.

As always, I attended a Saturday evening performance before catching both Sunday offerings. This year, the show was 9 to 5, in the newer, leaner version of the Dolly Parton-Patricia Resnick musical that had briefly played Broadway in 2009. The estimable Paula Leggett Chase portrayed Violet Newstead, the secretary who had been quadruple-bypassed when her boss Mr. Hart was handing out promotions. The winsome Darcie Roberts was Judy Bernly, the housewife who had to go to work after being dumped by her husband for a younger woman. And then there was the cute Jenni Barber playing Doralee, the trusting secretary who can’t understand why her co-workers won’t socialize with her. She didn’t know that they assumed she was sleeping with the nefarious Hart.

What fun it was to watch Mark Madama’s fine production that moved with the speed of summer lighting. But I just as much savored turning around from time to time and taking a peek at the audience. The wives were smiling, yes, but the husbands were grinning just as broadly.

Needless to say, this doesn’t happen everywhere. But Music Theatre of Wichita is one place in the world where I find the husbands take to musicals just as much as their wives do. Even before the show begins, the lobby is filled with men and women whose faces show equal amounts of joyous anticipation. I must assume that some husbands aren’t remotely interested and are dragged here by angry wives (“We’re going, and that’s that!”). But I’ve never seen that walk-to-the-gallows look on any man’s face. And understand that most of these guys are big, beefy and corn-fed.

So Earl is not an atypical male MTW theatergoer. Well, in a way he is, because he and his wife live three hours away in Dodge City. And yet, at least three times a summer, they get out of Dodge for a day and see an MTW musical. To spend the time, gas and wear-and-tear on the car tells you how important this theater is to their lives.

I’m not implying that Earl and all the other men are rabid musical theater aficionados. Most of them undoubtedly don’t know The Man Who Came to Dinner from The Girl Who Came to Supper, or Billy Dee Williams from Billy DeWolfe. When someone mentions the 2008 champions, the U of Kansas Jayhawks basketball team must come to their minds and not In the Heights.

I’m not even saying that these guys look forward to the Tonys each year. But if they’d tuned in last year, I suspect that they would have been confused by the opening number that proclaimed that theater is “Not Just for Gays Anymore.” That musical theater could be so marginalized and appeal mainly to one group might well be news to them. Doesn’t everyone get a kick out of musicals the way we do?

Yes, the men in MTW’s audiences simply see musicals as another form of entertainment that pleases them. They enjoy sports, sitcoms, movies, blue movies – and musicals, too. For these guys, a great big Broadway show is just another way of having a good time. And so, all three performances of 9 to 5 were greeted with as much hearty masculine laughter as higher-pitched feminine giggles.

9 to 5 has a minor character named Margaret who is an out-and-out lush. Once Violet, Doralee and Judy take over the company by kidnapping the evil Hart, they put her in rehab. Near show’s end, she returns looking tan, rested and ready. On Sunday evening, the man sitting behind me exclaimed in glee “Margaret!” as soon she’d entered. It wasn’t the sound of someone who’d seen it coming, but someone who’d figured it out and had recognized her through the makeover. In other words, he’d been playing rapt attention.

Everyone did. There was a scene in which Violet returned to the office from shopping. Among her purchases were a box of sugar substitute for Hart’s coffee and a similar-looking box of rat poison that was meant to solve an office infestation. When Violet mistook one for the other, both feminine and masculine moans were heard at all three performances. These women – and men – were involved.

“Where is my hat and rope?” Doralee said during her fantasy sequence in which she wanted to to hogtie Hart. Suddenly, both items appeared on poles from the stage left wing. The women – and men – chuckled in approval, because they loved how such things are allowed to happen in musicals.

Everyone regardless of sex seemed to be waiting for every punch line and appreciated it when it came. A scene didn’t have to end with a song to get applause; a simple blackout started the clapping. But at Sunday afternoon’s performance, after a song had ended and the orchestra began to play scene-change music, I saw that the man next to me was tapping his hand on his knee in rhythm. That each of the three performances got a standing ovation won’t surprise you, but would you have assumed that a man started it each time? This doesn’t mean that the women weren’t into what was going on. After the show, as the couples filed out, many husbands and wives were grinning at each other and sashaying to the out-music.

And we’re talking about quite a few people, for The Century II Performing Arts Center has 2,000 seats. Most of them are filled for the seven performances that each musical receives. By and large, the productions are truly homegrown, down to the sets and costumes. While Bryan occasionally rents such goods from another theater, more often he’s leasing to other theaters his sets and costumes from previous productions.

Some might cynically say, “Big deal, they’re doing business. What else is there to do in Wichita?” Probably more than we might think, even if Wichita’s one and only burlesque theater is now closed. But here’s the point: why is it that a city in Kansas is able to get thousands upon thousands of a week to come and see a musical? Why isn’t it happening everywhere?

Why doesn’t every city have an audience that takes such civic pride from a theater? As soon as Karen L. Robu, playing Hart’s suck-up Roz, entered at each of the three performances, I heard a purr of audience approval and recognition. “Yes,” said Bryan, who’s very happy for his homegrown star, now in her 16th season at MTW. “Karen was our Rose in Gypsy. I was thinking about getting someone from New York to do it, but I knew that she’d be just as good as anyone I could find there. And she was.”

Wichita theatergoers also take pride in knowing that they’re a training ground for so many young performers. Rarely does any Broadway musical open without at least one MTW alumnus. Next time you’re passing by the Imperial and run into Kelli O’Hara, ask her about MTW, where she got her start in Brigadoon and Where’s Charley? The only thing is, you’d better not be in a rush, because O’Hara will tell you at length and in no uncertain terms what an important building block Bryan and MTW were in her multi-Tony-nominated career. Ditto Kristin Chenoweth, who was a beedle-deedle-dee Cabaret girl in 1991.

This year, Madama took a big chance by casting Ryan Vasquez as Joe, the thirtysomething who takes a romantic interest in the older Violet.  But Vasquez is a mere 19. Playing against Broadway veteran Chase – she was in the final cast of the original A Chorus Line – might have intimidated many young men, but Vasquez held stage admirably with her. He certainly came across as someone in his thirties.

Younger kids benefit from MTW, too. Before each performance a Teen Choir performs songs that preview upcoming shows. The kids used to sing in the lobby, but the event became so popular and congested that now they get to perform on stage. Dozens of alumni from the Teen Choir have eventually become genuine cast members in mainstage shows.

And even younger kids are welcomed. The recent production of Fiddler had 76 in the cast, what with all the tots who learned at an early age that MTW is a great place to spend time. Last year, 98 were in The Music Man. “And,” said Bryan, “we even went as high as 104 in The King and I.”

And so, Bryan has made MTW The Place to Be and The Thing to Do in Wichita. But none of this would be happening if the product didn’t appeal to his public. Long ago, Bryan found out what they liked, and how they liked it, and he’s been giving it to them just that way for a quarter century. “I can do one slightly maverick show each summer,” he says. “They’ll take that. But I can’t do two. Then they wouldn’t be happy.”

Kansas is a red state, after all, and Bryan doesn’t want his patrons seeing red. And while many of us outside Wichita may be surprised to hear that Bryan considers the relatively benign 9 to 5 as this season’s maverick, he knows his audience.

(Does he ever. While Dolly Levi sings hello to Harry, Louie, Manny, Danny and Stanley, I count seven waiters that she doesn’t address by name. Stand in the lobby before and after a show, and see how many dozens of patrons that Bryan can easily identify. Believe me, his batting average is substantially higher than Mrs. Levi’s.)

And Bryan wants all to return. As a result, all season brochures and advertising warned that 9 to 5 was PG-13. And just in case the people that had already taken their seats had missed that, Bryan took the stage 15 minutes before curtain to again stress the PG-13 rating. He also mentioned the salty language and the plot’s reliance on recreational drug use. “We, however,” he stressed, “are not condoning anything on this stage but singing and dancing.”

To be frank, the type of laughter I heard from the crowd at all three performances suggested that these people weren’t offended when our three heroines shared a “doobie,” as the script chummily called it. Indeed, the knowing sound of their laughter suggested that they had been no strangers to the weed in their wayward youths.

Throughout the show, I heard men laugh with the sound that let me know that they were concurrently wiping their eyes that were wet from laughter. But I also heard them and the women enjoy seeing the “sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot” Hart get his comeuppance every time it happened. Both male and female voices could be heard to moan after Violet complained and Hart muttered, “Must be her time of the month.”

Both men and women showed that they were for fair play in marriage, too. In the first act, Judy would have done anything to get her wayward husband back, but in the second, she wouldn’t have done anything to take him back. After Roberts sang that he should “Get Out and Stay Out,” she got cheers of NFL proportions from all. It wasn’t just Roberts’ delivery of the song; they were proud of her character for moving on.

Chase would have got a similar earthquake of applause had Parton given Violet an eleven o’clock “Rose’s Turn.” The role really demands it, but Resnick instead gave Violet a speech where she told the Big Boss that she and the other secretaries weren’t getting ahead because “We’re not the guys. We’re just the little guys.” Now that should have been a song, and a stunner. Even without it, however, Chase was marvelous in the role and got applause after the harangue – in equal parts from men and women.

And if we needed any additional proof that Earl came to love this medium, we got it when he said, “Because of here, I even got into doin’ some community theater.” There was great satisfaction in his voice when he informed me that “I delivered the penguins to Sheridan Whiteside.” So maybe men here do know the difference between The Man Who Came to Dinner and The Girl Who Came to Supper.

— Peter Filichia

Follow Peter Filchia at  http://www.kritzerland.com/filichia0706.htm