March 12, 2022
By Emilia Calabrese
Editor-in-Chief
A cast of 26 LHS students and staff brought murder, mayhem and music to the middle school stage on Feb. 16-19 when they performed Fred Ebb and Bob Fosse’s high school edition of the 1975 Broadway hit “Chicago.”
The central conflict in this dark comedy musical arises when Roxie Hart is charged for the murder of Fred Casely, with whom she was having an affair.
While Roxie is locked up in Cook County Jail, she encounters nightclub star Velma Kelly, who has been charged with killing her husband and sister.
When Roxie and Velma hire the same lawyer, tensions arise, as both vie for the spotlight and go to great lengths to keep their names in the headlines.
Sophomore Olivia Oliveira, who plays the determined and sassy Velma, said she went into auditions with no expectations other than wanting to be part of the show.
“I feel extremely grateful, and I’m still in shock that I’ve been given the opportunity to portray one of my favorite characters of all time,” Oliveira said.
Oliveira has participated in musicals through her dance studio, but this was her first performance in an LHS musical. She said her favorite part about preparing for the show was when the cast began conducting full run throughs.
“It made it all feel real and come to life,” Oliveira said. “The preparation can sometimes be stressful, but learning choreography, singing through songs and blocking new scenes is so much fun.”
Oliveira said the most difficult aspect of the experience was calming her nerves.
Sometimes your anxiety just gets the best of you and makes you feel overwhelmed, but the cast is so sweet, and we’re constantly reassuring one another,” Oliveira said.
Senior Alexis O’Rourke, who has been acting since fifth grade, played the role of Roxie, though she auditioned for the part of Velma. However, after getting cast as Roxie, O’Rourke said she realized it was a better fit for her.
“I would never trade it, and I feel as though she’s a part of me now that I hold dear to my heart,” O’Rourke said.
Mrs. Ruiz, who has been directing LHS musicals for 18 years, said whenever she creates choreography, her brain immediately scales it down to fit the high school stage. However, since LMS’s stage is twice as big, she had to focus on spreading dancers out to fill the space.
She said learning songs and lines has always come easily to her, but this time, dance numbers were more challenging since this musical had so many of them, especially at the end when Roxie and Velma have their big dance number.
She said every year, the cast has a discussion about the “it moment,” which means an instance occurring on or off stage that reminds a performer of the reason they do the show because, no matter what challenges they face, the memories will stay with them forever.
The cast even received bracelets customized for the show and promised never to stop trying to find their “it moment.”
“My ‘it moment’ was [on] the last night of the show, [when director Mrs.] Ruiz pulled me aside to give me a pep talk, and it made me very emotional because it was my last musical for [LHS],” O’Rourke said. “It’s difficult to say goodbye to something so special to me.”
O’Rourke said she is proud of the actress she has become.
“Ever since I was a little girl, all I wanted to do was sing and perform, and now I have accomplished that all of my four years [of high school]. No matter how well I have done, I always think of the little girl’s dream that came true, which always keeps me motivated because this is what I knew she wanted for me,” O’Rourke said.
“The musical became overwhelming at times with school, homework and other activities, but you have to push through, and that’s why we find our ‘it moment.’“
She said she is upset now that the musical is over.
“I’ve watched seniors I’ve grown close with graduate each year, and now I’m leaving my legacy behind on the stage,” O’Rourke said.
Freshman Drew Bancroft, who played Roxie’s faithful and naive husband, Amos Hart, said he was shocked to have been cast in the role.
“I was surprised not only because of the talent that the other male actors had but also because I was unsure of whether or not a freshman could even obtain such a leading part,” Bancroft said.
He said taking on the role of Amos has given him confidence in his singing abilities, but it also came with struggles. Bancroft said learning how to portray Amos through body language and facial expressions was difficult, but he persevered. “The most challenging aspect of preparing for the musical was memorizing lines,” Bancroft said.
“[It] seemed like a daunting task at first [but] was rather simple after constantly performing the show,” Bancroft said.
He said his favorite part about rehearsals was watching the big musical numbers develop.
“This could take anywhere from days to a whole week, and it was rather satisfying to watch them come together,” Bancroft said.
Unlike previous LHS musicals, “Chicago” was performed in the state-of-the-art theater at Lyndhurst Middle School.
Senior Isabella DiPisa, who has been on the lighting crew since her freshman year, said at LHS, the lighting system is much older, so there are more manual controls. In contrast, the lights at LMS are more accessible and similar to those used on Broadway.
“At LMS, the lights are LED, and you can make them any color at any time you want, and you can move the lights and have so much more creative control,” DiPisa said. “[At LHS], if you want to change a color of a light, you need to climb up to the light itself and put a gel cover over the light so it comes out a different color.”
DiPisa said she most enjoyed lighting the “Cell Block Tango” scene.
“It’s such an iconic song in the world of theater, and I got to play around with the lights in such a rhythmic way,” DiPisa said.
“There [are] always a lot of new obstacles that we need to overcome and figure out, and we always do,” Ruiz said.
She said the preparation process requires attention to detail, and there is a lot to do in a short amount of time.
“As hard as it is, it is such a great feeling once we actually get there,” said Ruiz.
