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General News: Urinetown Premiers Thursday at High School
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| The poor are in misery as they await the public facility. |
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| Officer Lockstock confronts Bobby Strong. |
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| Cladwell B. Cladwell slaps his good friend Senator Fipp on the back. |
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| These secretaries all think the UGC boss is great. |
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| Hope Cladwell finds love with Bobby Strong. |
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| The dancing police officers carry plungers for batons. |
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| The Poor Chorus sings its demands. |
March 21, 2012
Go, go – if you do nothing else this weekend, go check out the rousing production of Urinetown that is being staged by student actors, singers and dancers at Cornwall Central High School. The show features a tremendous musical score that the powerful voices of the cast builds on to create an evening of great entertainment.
Now, don’t let the shocking title fool you. This is not a show about toilet humor. Rather, it is a musical that both celebrates and spoofs the best of Broadway traditions. Urinetown is a hilarious tale of greed, corruption, love, and revolution in a time when water is worth its weight in gold.
The story unfolds with Officer Lockstock, played by Dante Giannetta, and a street urchine, Little Sally (Lea Pandoliano and Katie Kennelly), who explain a system of harsh laws meant to ensure that people urinate in public toilets where a large fee is collected. Bobby Strong, played by Craig Franke on Thursday and Saturday and by Brian Barrows on Friday and Sunday, is an assistant urinal custodian who labors under the sharp eye of Penelope Pennywise (Celine Trella).
When Bobby Strong’s father is arrested after he urinated on the street because he didn’t have the money to enter the urinal, Bobby embarks on a crusade for justice. Dozens of poorly dressed men and women, follow him as the Poor Chorus, the Poorer Chorus and the Poorest Chorus raise their voices in a dramatic revolt.
Corporate Greed on Display at Headquarters
Meanwhile, at the corporate headquarters of Urine Good Gompany, Cladwell B. Cladwell (Ryan Cobb) welcomes aboard his daughter, Hope, who will be faxing and copying during the summer break. Dozens of high-stepping secretaries perform a dazzling performance that reveals their devotion to the boss. Daddy notes that he sent his daughter to college “to learn to manipulate great masses of people” but soon she takes a path he would not have predicted.
After the cops on the beat show off their singing and dancing talents, Hope Cladwell (played by Liz Chiero on Friday and Sunday and by Lora Rinaldi on Thursday and Saturday) sees the rebel Bobby Strong and together they discover love.
While the love provides an opportunity for a classic duet, it is short-lived. Bobby decides that he can no longer take people’s money to use the urinals and the sides are drawn. UGC chief Cladwell calls Strong “a rabble-rousing son of a convicted criminal” and the rebels seize his daughter, holding her for ransom in some dark sewer.
All of these great dramatic moments occur in the first half of the play. The second half is just as riveting. The cops, in the pay of UGC, mount a search for Hope and Bobby takes his struggle to the final stage.
The Show Ends on a Non-Traditional Note
The outcome of the story is not what you expect in a traditional musical because it was written as a parody of musicals and is faithful to that end. Urinetown, with lyrics and music by Mark Hollmann and Greg Kotis, won two Tony Awards when it debuted on Broadway in 2001 and the characters have become classics on the stage.
This year’s high school production is once again directed by Richard Aufiero, Tony Ravinsky is the musical and technical director and Karen Boden is the assistant musical director. Choreography is directed by Beth Whalen and Prscilla Ammons, while Vic Esposito conducts the pit orchestra. Karen Eremin oversaw the costume production.
Tickets Are Still Available
Performances are March 22nd through 24th at 7pm, and March 25th at 2pm. Tickets are $10.00 for adults and $8.00 for seniors and students, except on Thursday, March 22nd, where all seats are $5.00. You can reserve your seats by calling 845-497-3914, or you can email your requests to: [email protected].
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