by Alyson Haley
In honor of the 150th anniversary of the show’s basis this fall, the HHS Drama Society put on a production of Honk! the musical.
This show, unlike some in the past, had more of an ensemble cast, where everyone had a vital role in the show. Of course like all shows there were a few characters more prominent than others, but for the most part no one had a “lead” role.
Honk!, based on Hans Christian Andersen’s story The Ugly Duckling, tells the story of an odd looking duck, Ugly, and his journey to reconnect with his mother.
“It’s not just his story,” said director Kathleen McKenzie. “It is the story of Ugly and everyone he meets along the way.”
McKenzie decided to put on this show because it was a good fit for the group of kids and the audience they perform to. Honk! was not only the right show for them, but it also brought on the right amount of challenge. The closeness of the group aided them in their ability to work together.
Most of the cast members took on several different roles. Sophomore Katie Moran played not only the bullfrog, but also a pheasant and a jellyfish. The smaller scale cast had most cast members putting on different personas in back-to-back scenes.
“It’s not that difficult, but when I’m in each character I have to remember how I’m supposed to act,” said Moran. “In each character I play a completely different personality. We need to be able to show that we are not just one character in separate costumes, but completely different characters.”
Since they were such a small cast, a normal spring show has around 40 cast members, they were able to not only bond really well, but also be able to share the stage equally.
“[McKenzie] tries to have everyone onstage the same amount of time,” said junior Jacob DiLauro. “Besides our main role we have like four other parts.”
Even if their character was small, everyone was a part of every song, and everyone was showcased.
“Everyone in the show gets to have a moment or multiple moments on stage that truly display their character and allow them to shine,” said senior Scott Kall. “When everyone’s in the same boat, the energy skyrockets, and those ‘small’ parts turn out to be not quite so small.”
According to McKenzie, like all shows she and the Drama Society have put on, things seemed very hectic and like they were doomed, but as McKenzie relates to Kiss Me Kate’s “Another Opening, Another Show”, says, “Four weeks, you rehearse and rehearse, Three weeks and it couldn’t be worse, One week, will it ever be right? Then out o’ the hat, it’s that big first night!”
