Audiences can see Atherton’s production of Once Upon a Mattress starting this Thursday, the 19th, to the 22nd.
“Once Upon a Mattress” is based off of “Princess and the Pea”, and follows Winnifred, a swamp princess. Winnifred has to prepare for an unknown test to marry Prince Dauntless, trapped by his mother, the Queen. Nobody can marry until Prince Dauntless is wed, but will Winnifred pass the test?
Shelby Steege is Atherton’s theatre and stagecraft teacher, and is a director of “Once Upon a Mattress”. Steege describes the process of making a musical.
“Putting on a musical is a production that has more moving parts than you can imagine. It is above all making sure you can tell the story to the best of our possibilities. That includes bringing on a choreographer to help with movement, and utilizing our amazing choir teacher Ms. Cumberledge to be the musical director and teach music,” Steege said.
Steege chose “Once Upon a Mattress” for its classical elements and inspiring main message.
“As an educator, I want to make sure that my students have a broad range of knowledge when it comes to different types of theatre, so I wanted to do a show that is more classic, and explore those elements that can be very different than a modern show. The other part is I really like the message of the main character from “Once Upon a Mattress”; that she is fully herself, and that is something that the other characters in the play learn to love and respect about her,” said Steege.
Idina Glass (11) plays Winnifred the Woebegone, also known as Fred. Glass describes Winnifred’s journey in the musical. Compared to other characters in the past, Glass feels more connected to Winnifred.
“She sort of goes on a character arc traveling from a place that is societally different from a place that she comes to, and in the process she introduces love to the people that she goes to and the people that are there. She’s much different from the two characters that I’ve played in the past. I get type-casted a lot, so I was actually told I would probably get the Queen. I was really happy to get Winnifred, because she feels a lot like me, rather than the other characters that I’ve played,” Glass said.
Glass prefers musical theatre, and enjoys sharing the preparation process with her family.
“I actually prefer musical theatre, so the audition process was something I prepared for for a really long time. I’m a musical theatre nerd, and my mom is a musical theatre nerd, so it was something I got to share with my family even before I got the role, and it was something I was excited to share with them,” said Glass.
Glass is most looking forward to the performances.
“I’m honestly most excited to perform. I know that might sound a little cheesy, but I’m really proud of this performance and I put a lot of effort into it. Just to perform it for people I love is very exciting,” said Glass.
Evangelia Grivas (12) is the head of scenery. Grivas lists some of the set department’s projects.
“Our main thing was that we had to build the main set, which consists of 3 layers of platforms, in a stair-like formation. We had to build walls that go along the back of that and make arch-like cut outs. We also had to build 2 different sizes of 2 different thrones for the king and queen. We built a human-sized birdcage. Currently we are painting everything, including 4 different columns. Also, we’re in charge of all of the furniture and moving that for each scene,” Grivas said.
Grivas also notes the other tech departments’ accomplishments.
“Everyone in tech is very hard-working. They always have been. I’m friends with pretty much every single tech head and with that I can definitely see their hard-workers, and people that love what they do,” Grivas said.
Grivas anticipates the moment where tech and the actors can merge.
“I’m excited to actually see the performance because while they’re practicing and rehearsing I get to hear all the songs, and honestly they sound really good. I’m also excited to see how they interact with the set and all of the things that tech has made. It’s cool to see actors and tech come together with a finished product,” Grivas said.
For Steege, her favorite part of the musical is watching the growth in her students.
“My favorite part (it’s almost always my favorite thing as a director) is watching the confidence build as we go through the process; seeing my students push through the hard parts to get to a really well put together production,” Steege said.
Steege excited for audiences to enjoy this fun-loving musical.
“I think the audience is going to love the over-the-top characters and the humorous spin on a well-known fairytale,” Steege said.
Shows from Thursday to Saturday are at 7pm in the Atherton auditorium, with Sunday’s show being at 2pm. Tickets can be found online. There are VIP tickets for the front 3 rows for 15 dollars. General admission tickets are 10 dollars, and for a few days leading up to the show, discounted student tickets will be available in the cafeteria ($7).
For dancing, singing, laughter, and more, come watch this comedic and fun story about love, leadership, and the meaning of true royalty.
