Briarcliff High School Theater Presents Amélie the Musical

If the name “Amélie” triggers a feeling of Déjà-vu, it must be because you are thinking of the popular 2001 French film by the same name. This weekend, Briarcliff High School’s talented theater group will be performing the musical “Amélie.” So, we spoke with the lead actors and the director to find out what makes this show special.

In the story, a young, quirky woman performs small acts of kindness. She meets a young man, falls in love and realizes that she will have to risk everything to find happiness. Along the
way, she discovers the power of connection and sees possibilities in every corner.

One of the most influential people in Amélie’s life is her father, Raphael, who is a doctor. Briarcliff
High School junior Harrison Beckler plays Raphael in his 11th high school production.

“I have played a lot of characters like dads and in the last show I played a doctor, so I’m combining my experiences.” he said. “Raphael’s parenting style is militaristic. He’s very
attached to his garden gnome.”

Director Paul Kite said the show is about making connections.

“It’s a show about overcoming the things that you are afraid of in order to reach out and connect with somebody. I hope that people know that they can make a connection and that they feel
comforted by this,” he said.

Amélie is played by Emily Boviero, a senior at the high school, who finds this show very interesting.

“It stimulates my imagination. It is a little weird so I hope the audience goes in with an open mind and can see that we have worked hard on this. We’ve spent countless hours,” she said.

“This show has everything,” added Kite. “There are projections, regular puppetry and shadow puppetry, there are many props. The students are bringing them from home and I made some,” he said.

“It’s a very abstract show with many creative directions. The most challenging parts are my favorite parts,” said Ty Amsterdam, a sophomore who plays Amélie’s love interest, Nino.

The students rehearse every day after school for three hours and sometimes things can get comical during rehearsals.

“There is a romantic scene between my love interest and me in the show,” Boviero said. “One day when we were preparing for the scene everyone was crowding around us and really focused
on us. It was the kissing scene and the director had us do it over and over. And every time people would clap for us. It was awkward but very funny at the same time,” she added with a smile.

While the students are spending their afternoons rehearsing, they are also learning invaluable skills, according to Kite.

“All of the things that come with theater: being comfortable talking in front of large groups of people and having presence; the kids are internalizing all of this. The show’s producer,
Ian Driver, always says ‘we’re in the business of building character,” he said. “For me, the most exciting part is that once the show starts, there are no grownups that are making it happen. The students are in charge. The students are on stage for three hours, they have to manage themselves, no one is going to tell them where to go. No one is going to check to make sure that you are where you’re supposed to be or check your props for you. It’s a really great
responsibility,” he concluded.

Students will hold three performances this weekend. There will also be a photo booth in the auditorium lobby one hour before the show starts, where all tickets holders can get their
photo taken to keep as a memento from the show.

Performance dates:

Friday, March 6 at 7:30 pm

Saturday, March 7 at 7:30 pm

Sunday, March 7 at 2:30 pm

Tickets remain on sale two hours
prior to each performance.

https://www.showtix4u.com/event-details/36187