Upper School students from Girls Preparatory School and McCallie School will perform Mary Poppins, the Broadway musical based on the stories of P.L. Travers and the Walt Disney Film, April 13-15, in GPS Frierson Theatre.
Mike Lees, GPS director of choirs and musical theater, said he chose the family-friendly, feel-good Mary Poppins because he wanted to present an uplifting, audience-pleasing production. “Mary Poppins steps in to repair a broken family,” he says. “It’s a story about love.” He also chose the musical for its strong female and male leads, which allows both schools an opportunity to showcase their students’ talents.
“In my 36 years in high school music and theater, this is the most challenging musical I’ve done,” Mr. Lees said.
Casting the musical called for finding students who could sing, dance and act. Assistant Director Lizzie Chazen Luhowiak and Choreographer Jessica McCuiston joined Mr. Lees in making the tough decisions as to who would play the lead roles. Ultimately Michael Maloney was cast as Bert and Darby Breedlove was chosen to play Mary Poppins. Although the musical has two main stars, Ms. Luhowiak says, “The supporting cast provides plenty of opportunities for students to steal the show. For example, Abi Wilson plays the wicked nanny Miss Andrew. She’s only in about three scenes, but you will never forget her.”
Because one really can’t tell the story of Mary Poppins without the expectation of seeing her float through the sky with her umbrella, in early April ZFX Flying Effects will begin training the crew on the harness and mechanism that will send Mary “up to the highest height.”
"With rehearsals well underway and the cast off-book, choreography is being perfected and musical numbers fine tuned. GPS Interim Theater Director John Holleman leads a crew of students to design sets and props.
"While the stage adaptation isn’t an exact replication of the Disney movie, favorite musical numbers such as 'Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious,' 'Step in Time,' 'A Spoonful of Sugar,' 'Let’s Go Fly a Kite' and 'Jolly Holiday' are still a part of the production, and new songs and scenes add charm to a beloved classic," officials said.
Tickets for the three showings, April 13 and 14 at 7 p.m. and April 15 at 2 p.m., are available for purchase online at
GPS.edu/MaryPoppins.