You don’t have to put on your Sunday clothes to see Hello, Dolly.
This year’s spring musical is Hello, Dolly, with lyrics and music by Jerry Herman and a book by Michael Stewart. David Merrick produced the 1964 play about Mrs. Dolly Gallagher Levi, a woman who loves to meddle in other people’s lives. The comedy is full of crazy run-ins and mistaken identities. It’s a show for anyone wanting a good laugh or a happy ending. It’s a family oriented production full of singing, dancing and fun.
The original Broadway production won 10 Tony awards. Carol Channing became famous in her role as the Dolly of Broadway and Barbra Streisand made the character of Dolly even more popular when she starred in the 1969 film version. Louis Armstrong’s 1964 version of the title song won a Grammy as Song of the Year in 1965.
The musical is based on the 1955 play The Matchmaker by Thorton Wilder. The story takes place in late 19th-century in Yonkers, N.Y., then New York City.
Timothy Ortmann directs the Niles North production. Choir director Dan Gregerman conducts the orchestra, Candice Crane is the musical director, senior Shannon Rourke is the stage manager, and sophomore Camille Paskind and senior Naveem Kanji are assistant directors.
“While The Matchmaker is one of my favorite plays,” Ortmann says, “Hello, Dolly is one of my favorite musicals. It was one of the first musical movies I ever saw. When my sister was in seventh grade, she was in Hello, Dolly and we all went to go see it. I immediately fell in love with it. It was one of the biggest, full-of-life things I had ever seen.”
Junior Rachel Sepiashvili plays the title role of matchmaker Dolly Gallagher Levi.
Teresa Franks, who is making her Niles North debut as Irene Molloy, reflects on her Hello, Dolly experience. “I was nervous at first, but I’ve learned so much from Mr. Ortmann and my fellow cast members,” Franks says. “It’s been a really fun process and I can’t wait for the show.”
Other leads include senior Yiorgos Giannetos as Horace Vandergelder; junior Emma Decker as Ermengarde; junior Christopher Khoshaba as Cornelius Hackl; senior Dylan Connelley as Barnaby Tucker; freshman Teresa Franks as Irene Molloy; junior Nina Roy as Minnie Fay; and sophomore Ryan Loach as Ambrose Kemper.
The impressive chorus plays many roles. The chorus includes: Will Boersma, Eugene Hyun, Sarah Alkyer,, Athanasia Giannetos, Erin Rourke, Robin Wallace, Jonathan Berg-Einhorn, Andy Mabis, Ben Sahyouni, Glenn Weissman, Noah Zeidman, Cathleen Lee, Sally Alvarado, Amy Hagedorn, Rebecca Pickering, Natalie Aleman, Hannah Sahyouni, Lauryn Schmelzer, Julia Thummel and Joanna Vaklin.
The Pit Orchestra includes: Sidrah Ahmed, Sophi Huang, Annie Kim, Rosemary Larsen, Mary Montemayor, Mona Munshi, Matt Wong, Jonathan Luk, Rachel Shaykn, Rachel Burton, Zoe Hertz, Phoebe Yeo, Spencer Lidskin, Shannon Mascarenhas, Jeremy Moy, Lucas Rosario, Ashley Ferrer, John Kinne, David Ruth, Tina Tillman, Michael Cox, Jonathan Sabin, Richard Beebe, Robby Moss, Benjamin Mazor and Leonardo Carrico.
Lauryn Schmelzer and Nina Roy are dance captains. A large run crew has put in many hours helping backstage with lights, sound, sets and costumes.
The cast will perform a free community show in the Auditorium on Thursday, March 15, at 10 a.m. Other performances are scheduled for Friday, March 16, at 7 p.m. and Saturday, March 17, at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Tickets are $10.
Patty • Mar 23, 2012 at 2:24 pm
I really enjoyed your article, Julia! Although it definitely made me even sadder that I was not able to attend the show, reading it was the next best thing to being there!
Judy • Mar 22, 2012 at 11:09 pm
Very informative article and great photo from one of my favorite scenes in the show!