It’s show time! The stage is set for this year’s fall play, “The Second Star,” written and directed by BPHS English teacher Mrs. Cortney Williams.
Theatergoers can catch this witty production Nov. 9, 10, and 11 at 7 p.m. in the BPHS auditorium.
The show tells the story of a theater that brings back Broadway star and alumni of the theater Mattie McLinden to save the theater from shutting down. They put together a performance of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” in two weeks in hopes of preventing the shutting down of the theater.
“The show is full of love and wit!” — Maggie Babyak
Mrs. Willimas writes the plays so that she can create more characters so that everyone who auditions can perform.
The cast introduces many new faces to the fall play this year, but they also have some returning faces.
Two seniors have been in all four of the shows in their high school years. Alea Taylor (Mattie) and Grace Skalniak (Blanche) feel sentimental over their fourth and final fall play.
When asked how she feels about this being her last fall play, Skalniak said, “I will miss being a part of the fall play family, but I will remember everyone who came before me and all the friends I’ve met through fall play.”
Similar to Skalniak, Taylor will miss the bond within the cast which they refer to as their “fall play family.”
Taylor said: “It’s such a bittersweet moment for me. I remember watching the seniors giving their speeches my freshman year and never imagining that that would soon be me. I love fall play so much. It’s genuinely my favorite part of the school year, and the fact that so many of the underclassmen look up to me and think of me as a mentor figure is just so sweet. I’m so honored. Just thinking about leaving the family we’ve created makes me so sad, but the underclassmen are full of so much potential, and I just know they will bring the passion and love that I’ve had for fall play when I’m gone.”
Here’s the cast of “The Second Star”:
- Kate McLinden: Soph Willis
- Mattie McLinden: Alea Taylor
- Michael Benvolio: Noah Stiglich
- Anna: Meredith Myers
- Rosalind: Sharlyne Ngige
- Blanche Mormont: Grace Skalniak
- Toni Blake: Reagan Finnell
- Bianca Winterbrooke: Maggie Babyak
- Maria: Rylin Celento
- Julia: Peyton Michaels
- Christopher: Maden Konopka
- James: Dylan Lawton
- Meg: Sophia Brawner
- Nick: Tristan Shay
- Portia: Haley Uselman
- Frankie: Michaela Gratton
- Georgie: August Truver
- Jesse: Dylan Quinn
- Diana: Maddie Rudolph
- Sammy: Kylie Flanigan
- Joey: Nick Johnson
- William: James Sipe
- Viola: Nevi Cardamone
- Alex: Charlotte Jaszcar
- Reporters: Izabelle Townsend, Elizabeth Mackey, Meg Rabb, Farah Namas, Jordan Campagna
“Just thinking about leaving the family we’ve created makes me so sad, but the underclassmen are full of so much potential, and I just know they will bring the passion and love that I’ve had for fall play when I’m gone.”
— Alea Taylor
First-year fall play member and senior Dylan Lawton said, “People should see the fall play because it’s really funny and it has a great message about family.”
Third-year fall play member and junior Maggie Babyak encourages people to see the show as she says, “The show is full of love and wit!”
To support the cast and their hard work, you can buy tickets to see the show. They are $5 and can be bought here.