Unionville High School Students will lead and perform a showcase of Broadway numbers, this Saturday evening.
EAST MARLBOROUGH — Unionville High School students, mostly seniors, are taking over the stage to produce, direct and star in a Cabaret featuring the songs of Sweeney Todd and other Broadway favorites. The Cabaret will take place Saturday, June 3, at 7 pm in the UHS Auditorium. Selections from Broadway is open to all and admission is free. The public is also welcome to attend the dress rehearsal on Friday, June 2 at 7 pm.
More than 40 UHS students are participating in the cast and crew. David DeMarco serves as Director of the show and he is joined by fellow seniors in leadership roles; specifically Assistant Director Dina Spyropoulos, Stage Manager Megan Belgam, Lighting Director Chris Gehrke, Sound Director Ben Basilio, and Costume Designer Mary Boeni. Juniors Max Baines, Assistant Sound Director, and Cameron Cofrancesco, Choreographer, round out the production team.
The Cabaret will feature performances by 19 students, including seniors Jeremy Do, Alex Kallis, Adam Kimmel, Dina Spyropoulos, and Leah Tedesco; juniors Alex Koban-Hogue, Troy Macie, and Ethan Pan; and Freshman Josiah Taylor. The show will include musical numbers from such Broadway classics as Sweeney Todd, Les Miserables, Cats, The Sound of Music, Phantom of the Opera, and Annie.
The tradition of a student-run production, referred to as the May Play, began in 2007 with Unionville student Domingo Mancuello, the son of UHS Spanish teacher Julia Hawkes. Domingo was seeking a way to give students a hands-on creative experience in every aspect of theater.
In Domingo’s senior year, he worked with his fellow students to stage a production of Sweeney Todd. To fill out the cast, he found 5th grader David DeMarco, the younger brother of one of the cast members, to play the role of a child. It was an experience David never forgot and he vowed to bring Sweeney Todd back to Unionville in his senior year. With this year’s show, David has kept this promise.
