Photo by Joanne Beck
Going for the top role in Pavilion’s fourth and fifth grade musical may have seemed daring for 10-year-old Maddie Smart, who admittedly had some apprehension to overcome.
But the soft-spoken fifth-grader decided to take the leap.
“I tried out for the role because I thought, I’ve never been the lead before, and I’ve never done a play,” she said Monday during a break from rehearsal at the high school’s auditorium. “I didn’t want to be on the couch, I wanted to be doing something. It’s very exciting; it’s not as scary anymore.”
It was almost as if Maddie, in her island-themed skirt and shell-decorated tank top, wearing a turquoise necklace and holding a small wooden paddle, had literally embodied lead Moana’s brave spirit from the show "Moana Jr. Musical."
The show goes on at 2 and 6:30 p.m. Thursday at Pavilion High School, 7014 Big Tree Road, Pavilion.
“She’s a brave person. She wants to save her island,” Maddie said of her character. “I can see myself in her. It’s not in this time; it’s a long time ago, before there were buildings. There was hay and stuff, and people had their own tribes and islands. She became a superhero by saving her tribe.”
Given the amount of time that Moana is in the show, that means learning many lines and choreography, and singing solos. There wasn’t much that felt too challenging for her, Maddie said.
“I memorized all my lines. My brain is just very smart and can memorize,” she said. “I feel good singing in front of people.”
Moana Jr. is a 60-minute adaptation of the 2016 Disney animated film, and features a “coming-of-age story that follows the strong-willed Moana as she sets sail across the Pacific to save her village and discover the truth about her heritage,” Music Theatre International states.
Sixth-grader Connor Smart, Maddie’s cousin, was already in his own school’s play earlier this year, and was asked by Musical Director and Coordinator Rebecca Marczyk if he would help out with this one as assistant director. He hasn’t minded putting in the extra time after school the past few months, he said.
“I’ve been helping getting everyone out on time, and just helping people memorize their lines, and helping with the songs and stuff,” he said, answering if he’s had to act like a boss to fellow students. “Not really. Most of the kids are very well prepared and ready to go.”
Connor has gained from the experience, such as “learning just to be patient a little bit,” he said. He also has taught from his own acting on stage: "Speak louder to all the exit signs, articulate your words," he said.
“It’s a very good show, all the kids are doing a very good job, they’re very good at singing,” the 11-year-old said. “It’s definitely very upbeat, I would say, because it’s very, there’s some parts like, very calm, and kind of sad, and then there are others parts that’s very active. And people are coming in from all sides, that’s really cool.”
Dressed from head to toe for her role in the monster ensemble — an ocean creature of flowy underwater plants — Emma Sponaugle had not one but two roles in her first play ever. A transplant from Lyndonville last November, the 11-year-old also plays an ancestor. She wanted to be part of this production for reasons other than the plot.
“Moana is my favorite movie. I like swimming, and it’s all about the ocean,” she said. “The music is fun to listen to, it’s cheery.”
She also said that some of the movements can be challenging, displayed by a stage full of actors moving about the full width at any given time with dialogue, singing, dancing, and a crescendo of blue waves from the ocean, followed by stillness.
A trio of actors made up Essie Michau’s Tamatoa, a crab obsessed with all things shiny, with Ari Sardina serving as the left claw and Tenley Harris as the right one. All girls are in the fifth grade and described their central character as being “very sassy.”
“I am very bossy and have to make it about myself, and I love myself,” 11-year-old Essie said of her role, as Tenley added that “looking sassy is hard — the sassy face.”
There were lots of roles, though, both in front of the spot light and behind it. Landon Jett was one of the four stage crew members who opted to move sets and props in place, as another critical responsibility.
“I like to sing, but I didn’t really like singing in front of big crowds. So I wanted to be in stage crew,” the fourth-grader said, admitting to a change of heart for a future play. “Maybe I’ll act next time.”
Photo by Joanne Beck
Photo by Joanne Beck
Photo by Joanne Beck
