News
The Heights are alive...with The Sound of Music
October 28, 2011
Cleveland Heights, OH
Sound of Music Production at Heights High
November 3, 4, 5 at 7:30 p.m. and November 6 at 4 p.m.
Heights High Auditorium
$10 orchestra, $6 mezzanine
Call 320-3105 for tickets
Singing, dancing, and award-winning musicians from across the Cleveland Heights-University Heights School District will bring the timeless favorite --“The Sound of Music --” to our community in early November. Under the direction of Craig McGaughey, the cast will include more than 600 students in four performances, including 200 high school vocal music students, 75 instrumental students in the pit orchestra, 30 stage crew members, and 120 middle school and 250 elementary students in the chorus. The show includes two casts, each performing two nights.
Seven of the lead performers talked about the show and their characters in a recent interview. The first thing that is very clear is that this group knows each other well, and they display a sweet affection for each other that comes from hours spent in rehearsal together.
The second thing that is apparent is that they love being performers and are likely to act out a scene to demonstrate a point, or just for fun.
These students found the 1959 Rogers and Hammerstein show to be relevant and were touched by the story.
Madeline Pollis: (Maria) Madeline enjoys interpreting this well-known character in her own way. She identified with Maria’s “awkward and annoying ways.” Madeline is in a transition as a high school senior and “Like Maria, I have my singing to help me get through life.”
Midori Marsh: (Maria) Midori’s Maria is “sassy” and she enjoys portraying Maria’s free spirit, especially in the I Have Confidence number. And like Maria, “I don’t know where I will end up, but I am finding my way.” Next year she will be in college and will be on to the next phase in life.
Jasmine Price: (Elsa) Jasmine portrays the cold, catty, and sometimes devious fiancé of the captain. “She is not at all like me - so it was fun and different portraying someone with that kind of attitude.”
Geoffrey Golden: (Max) “Like Max, I can be a crazy choir director.” He is the student director for a few choirs and identifies with Max’s passion and energy for choral music. He also enjoyed the freedom to interpret the character in his own way.
Alex Weldy: (Max) “I identified with Max’s vision to make a concert happen and his ability to talk and talk.” Neither he nor Geoff had seen the movie in several years so they both based their interpretation on reading the script. “My Max is a bit of a 20’s radio guy.”
Abby Osgood: (Sister Berthe) She loved this character because “She is sassy, like I am.” The story is very important to her. “My grandmother escaped from the Nazis and some of our family members were killed in the Holocaust.” She knows that some people will relate to the story in significant ways.
Meckaela Glenn: (Sister Berthe) She was intrigued by the character because “this nun is sassy, but she is also married to God, so it’s a challenging role.” She is aware of the historical context of the show. The strained relationship between Liesl and Rolfe is universal – families do not always approve of a teenager’s love interest.
“This is an amazing and challenging undertaking by our Vocal and Instrumental Music Department," Musical Director Craig McGaughey said. “Our students have been working hard in rehearsals, and this will be a phenomenal show. The community is going to be so proud of our students. This will be a performance they will always remember.”
