River Dell Actors Take on Period Fairytale

Made famous by the likes of Carol Burnett and Bernadette Peters in the 1970s, the River Dell High School drama club will now put their own spin on "Once Upon a Mattress." The annual spring musical is a retelling of the classic fairytale of the Princess and the Pea and will be performed Thursday through Saturday at the high school.

“We wanted to make a contrast between this year and last year, co-director Brian Reich said. "Last year was Willy Wonka and it was no props, rudimentary costumes, using the open stage. This year we wanted to have a traditional musical with costumes, props, and also the style of the music is a lot different; it is an old term musical comedy. Plus, it is really really funny.”

"Mattress" is set in the fictional kingdom ruled by the devious Queen Aggravain (Shannon Hogan) and the mute King Sextimus the Silent (Trey Plutnicki) as their son Prince Dauntless (Mike Schwartz) searches for his bride-to-be.

Several princess later and Dauntless is still without a bride as Queen Aggravain tests each prospective wife and finds them lacking perfection. Enter Princess Winnifred the Woebegone (Nora Kennedy) and the entire castle is thrown upside down.

"I feel so honored to have the role of the Prince in this amazing production," senior Mike Schwartz said. The show is looking so fantastic this year. The musical abilities and acting abilities of the cast are just fantastic. It really is going to be an awesome show."

For senior Demetria Sardo, "Mattress" is her first and last role on the River Dell stage as a newcomer to the drama club. Sardo portrays Lady Larkin in the musical.

"I feel so lucky to have a major role this year. This is my first year doing the musical, so I feel really blessed to have been given such an amazing opportunity," Sardo said. "As I imagine many other seniors are, I'm a bit sad to see this year come to an end. This was my first and last year being in the RD spring musical, so ultimately, I couldn't be happier that I decided to audition in the winter, and was able to have this wonderful experience during my last months of high school."

Sardo and the remaining senior actors, Schwartz, Shannon Hogan, Vanessa Case, Mike Kost, Will Albach, Yooni Kwon and Emily Rizzo, will all give their senior speeches prior to the final production as a reflection over their years on the River Dell stage.

"We grew up with the seniors who graduated last year and the year before that," Case said. "And now it's the underclassmen that are growing up with us. This has been a really great experience to grow up with."

Hogan added that the final productions are emotional but not because their time on stage has ended but because they have spent the past three months working late every night together.

This year's production features approximately 34 actors spanning all grade levels along with close to 40 crew members. And while there are no set changes for "Mattress" unlike prior years, co-stage managers Dmonik Keller and Megan Dent have plenty of props to keep track of.

"We have a really great crew with us and Brianna Devine (prop mistress) makes things easier," Keller said. "There are a lot of props to have set up, but this is a good show to end on."

Once Upon a Mattress will be performed in the high school auditorium at 8pm on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. A matinee show is scheduled for Saturday, 2pm. Tickets will be available at the door for $15 per person or $10 for students and senior citizens.

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