Princesses, queens and the like took over the stage during the performances of “Once Upon a Mattress,” which ran from Thursday Nov. 20 to Saturday Nov. 23. A musical adaptation of “The Princess and the Pea,” this year’s fall musical, filled the auditorium with emotion delivered by a talented cast and crew.
The musical follows the story of a prince who is looking for a wife; however, the queen sets impossible tests to prevent Princess Winnifred from marrying the prince. After wrapping up a three-night run of shows, senior Ava Guckian reflects on her lead role as Princess Winnifred.
“[Winnifred] doesn’t really care about what other people think of her, which was really nice to be able to play someone like that,” Guckian said. “She’s super fun and energetic, and she is never really sad and she always looks on the bright side of things.”
While the cast and crew put on a successful show, Guckian spoke to the challenges of putting together the musical in the final weeks leading up to opening night.
“Adding in the tech is the hardest part because the whole rehearsal process you’re fake holding these props that you’re supposed to have or you’re supposed to have a dress on that you don’t,” Guckian said. “Putting on your costumes and having those props adds a new element, that’s harder to come together [with].”
Stage Manager senior Lilah Peters shared a similar sentiment, highlighting the cast and crew’s triumphs throughout rehearsals.
“We’ve done two run-throughs now, and they’ve both gone really well,” Peters said on opening night. “I’m kind of shocked because there hasn’t been a lot of time for the crew this year, which is normal, but the crews really came together.”
Last year many familiar faces graduated, creating space for new students to join the cast and crew this time around. While this came with its struggles, Peters details the versatility that came with this adjustment.
“This [musical], especially compared to last year, is a lot bigger, with the pit especially,” Peters said. “Last year, there were six people; this year there’s a whole bunch of people. It’s also a bigger lead cast [this year] as well.”
Although there were issues with the curtain on opening night, Guckain praised the rest of the cast and crew for working through them resiliently.
“They were very prepared and Sydney Roy, who had the first line of that scene. It was seamless,” Guckain said. “A lot of people didn’t notice.”
Additionally, Peters shared how the cast and crew have worked to bridge the communication gap between the two. According to Peters, the crew only began rehearsals with the cast two weeks before opening night while the cast had already been rehearsing together for months. Despite the initial communication gap, Peters praised the cast and crew for adapting quickly to those changes and sharing an optimistic tone for the show.
“The cast is incredible, everyone knows what they’re supposed to be doing,” Peters said.
