Pioneer Theatre Guild presents first Michigan High School production of Roald Dahl’s Matilda the Musical!”
Pioneer Theatre Guild is proud to present the first Michigan High School production of Roald Dahl’s “Matilda the Musical!”
Matilda is a little girl with astonishing wit, intelligence and psychokinetic powers. She’s unloved by her cruel parents but impresses her schoolteacher, the highly loveable Miss Honey. Over the course of her first term at school, Matilda and Miss Honey have a profound effect on each other’s lives, as Miss Honey begins not only to recognize but also appreciate Matilda’s extraordinary personality. Matilda’s school life isn’t completely smooth sailing, however – the school’s mean headmistress, Miss Trunchbull, hates children and just loves thinking up new punishments for those who don’t abide by her rules. But Matilda has courage and cleverness in equal amounts, and could be the school pupils’ saving grace!
Pioneer junior Martha Laramore-Josey shared her thoughts about playing Matilda: “It is the most exciting role I’ve ever had the chance to play, but also the most challenging! Matilda was actually the second Broadway show I ever saw, and it’s come full circle, which is super cool. I’m really looking forward to sharing her story with an audience!”
The production is being directed by Noah Wolfe, a senior in the Musical Theatre Department at the University of Michigan.
Wolfe said, “I like to think of starting a show as joining a conversation, not starting one. Years of work happened on this show before we were given the privilege and joy of taking part in it.” Noah did a remarkable job as Assistant Director of PTG’s smash hit production of “In the Heights” in the Spring of 2018 and is happy to be back at Pioneer helming Matilda.
Pioneer Senior Sam Marchand is very excited to be Costumes Crew Head on Matilda. She shared her thoughts about the experience, “We’ve never done a show where the cast are all supposed to be young kids so that’s a lot of fun to design.
“The costume designs for this show are so much fun, especially the Wormwood family’s costumes since they’re so eccentric and Miss Trunchbull’s costumes just because of her character. I love being costumes crew head because I love that I get to teach others how to sew, part of my job as crew head is teaching recruits how to sew, and show them how great costumes crew is.”
Lucas Connor is a Pioneer junior cast as the deliciously wicked Miss Trunchbull.
Connor said, “I feel so extremely thrilled to be playing Miss Trunchbull! It is nearly every actor’s dream to play such a unique and fun character like her and I am so grateful to be given the opportunity. She is the opposite of Matilda in that sense, where Matilda thinks “sometimes you have to be a little bit naughty”, but Trunchbull believes “you have to stay inside the circle all the time” but at the end of the day, both characters learn something valuable from the other.”
Don’t miss Pioneer Theatre Guild’s very, very special production of Roald Dahl’s Matilda the Musical!
Tickets: $10 (Students, 65+ Seniors, PHS Staff); $15 (Adults). Reserved Seating Tickets are available and on sale NOW at A2tix.com. General Admission Tickets will be available at the door starting one hour before each performance. All performances are in Schreiber Auditorium.
Performance Dates: ● Saturday, November 2, 7:30 pm ● Sunday November 3, 2:00 pm (matinee) ● Friday, November 8, 7:30 pm ● Saturday November 9, 7:30 pm ● Sunday November 10, 2:00 pm (matinee)
ROALD DAHL’S MATILDA THE MUSICAL
Director: Noah Wolfe
Choreographer: Thani Brant
Assistant Director: Amanda Rose Gross
Music Director: Helen Shen
Pit Conductor: Lauren Stout
Book by Dennis Kelly Music & Lyrics by Tim Minchin
