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by ANNEMARIE DONKIN
Despite a nearby four-acre fire that interrupted the Saturday afternoon and evening performances at the Topanga Community Center, the young actors quickly pulled it together for a final performance on Sunday afternoon when Will Geer’s Theatricum Botanicum came to the rescue and offered their stage. There’s no business like show business with a heart. The latest youth musical to hit the boards in the Canyon was Roald Dahl’s Matilda the Musical that played at the Topanga Community Center (TCC) on Friday, Nov. 15, and Saturday Nov. 16 for just the first act due to a fire nearby that broke out around 2:35 p.m. During the intermission, the play’s director, Kristy Beauvais, calmly informed the audience that the second act of the show was cancelled, as well as that evening’s performance. Remarkably, after striking the entire set from the TCC on Saturday, the show was completely restaged and somewhat rehearsed on Sunday morning for a final performance at 2 p.m. at Will Geer’s Theatricum Botanicum. That is an outstanding example of the entire cast and crew living up to the theatrical tradition of “the show must go on!” All the young performers knew their lines and choreography, adopted British dialects, hit their marks, and shined while singing and dancing their hearts out. Winner of more than 90 international awards, including 23 for Best Musical, Matilda is the story of an extraordinary little girl—neglected by her parents because she wasn’t a boy—but who is armed with a vivid imagination, a sharp mind, a bit of telekinesis, and dares to take a stand to change her own destiny. She is also “a little bit naughty!” Matilda in Topanga The Topanga production was the result of the efforts of FOCUSFish, the non-profit that brought the circus to the canyon with their aerial arts pavilion at the Cali Camp/Manzanita campus, which has expanded to bring children’s musical theater to Topanga. FOCUSFish founder and Matilda director Kristy Beauvais, along with her producing partner, Jill Williams, have been creating shows for more than ten years with their musical productions at Topanga Elementary. In this production Matilda featured more than 35 actors between the ages of 7 to 13 from six schools, including Manzanita, Topanga Elementary, Topanga Mountain School, Viewpoint, Waldorf, Paul Revere, and many homeschoolers. During the show, several performers really stood out, including tiny Maxine Hexum as the Young Matilda and, of course, the amazing Sailor Ramos as the older Matilda, who acted, danced, and sang her way into our hearts. Playing the adorable Little Kids were Mahina Choothesa-Sargis as Alice; Anika Williams as Luce; Echo Hexum as Horensia; Macie Kennedy as Eric; Bo Schmid as Tommy; Freddie Fulcher as Nigel; Brodie Beauvais as Amanda and Tallulah Gandee, who had some hilarious bits as Lavender. Matilda’s cruel and clueless parents were played by Charlie Burrows as Mr. Wormwood and Aurora Finetti as Mrs. Wormwood. Burrows had some clever moments singing “Telly,” and Finetti’s amazing performance of “Loud” was a real showstopper. Tanner Boynton played Matilda’s brother, Michael, alternately indulged in and ignored by their narcissistic parents, and was double cast as The Cook. Cassius Brown nearly stole the show with his comic antics as Mrs. Wormwood’s dance partner Rudolfo. Cheering Matilda on was her demure schoolteacher, Miss Honey, played by Allegra Frost, who performed touching renditions of “This Little Girl,” “I’m Here,” and “My House.” Sophie Sexton was also wonderful as Mrs. Phelps, the sweet librarian who not only encouraged, but was addicted to Matilda’s fantastical stories. Helping to spin Matilda’s tales were the Escapologist and his wife, The Acrobat, each well played by Wolf Momoa and Lola Momoa. Naturally, there must be a villain and Emma Farkas camped it up and brought down the house as the evil Miss Agatha Trunchbull, the school’s headmistress. Filling out the cast were Santo Wagstaffe as the Doctor; Gaia De Mesquito as the Nurse; Birdie Douglass as the Puppeteer; and Phoebe Krull, who stole the show as Sergei, the Russian Mob Boss, assisted by Henchman No. 1, Henry Whittenberg and Raiden Ray as Henchman 2. Playing the “Big Kids” were Santo Wagstaffe as Ben; Gaia De Mesquito as Butch; Chloe Gaines as Tamika; Virginia Burkons as Taylor; Satya Finch as Doris; Bodhi Lae as Ryan; Henry Whittenburg, Raiden Ray, Birdie Douglass, Tanner Boynton, and Farrah Whittenburg. The Parents were played by Phoebe Krull, Sophie Sexton, Gaia De Mesquito, Chloe Gaines, Satya Finch, Henry Wittenberg, Raiden Ray, Bodhi Lae, and Paige Murillo. The Aerialists, Chloe Gaines, Gaia De Mesquito, Bodhi Lae and Satya Finch took to the trapezes to the great thrill of the audience. What Beauvais took on, in her own words, “a challenging family theater production,” was an ambitious task, not the least of which was the last-minute restaging with 35 young actors and crew. Together, Team Matilda made it all work. Brava! Bravissimo! As Beauvais writes in her director’s letter: “Let’s continue to address bullying and empower our children with love and community. Like Matilda, let’s never be afraid to say, ‘That’s not right!’” Team Matilda The production team was headed by Jill Williams, who helped put the whole show together. The music director was Gabbi Beauvais; choreographer was Kristy Beauvais; set building and trapeze rigging were designed and constructed by Paul Beauvais; and Sabrina Zeri did the scenic painting and props. Jewels Nation was the stage manager; lighting and video was designed by Tom Mitchell, who also provided the sound with Glenn Gaines, while Richard Brody manned the spotlight at the TCC. Eliza Schneider was the dialect coach and Paulina Plopa was the junior dialect coach. Gabbi Beauvais and Mikayla Williams did hair and makeup and the backstage moms, Destiny Finetti and Tanya Farkas, wrangled the kids and costume changes. Bonnie Graves and Hilary Boynton provided the concessions. Roald Dahl’s Matilda, the Musical, is still a big draw in London, on Broadway, and in touring companies throughout the world. It is based on Dahl’s 1988 children’s novel of the same name. The Tony Award-winning musical was adapted by Dennis Kelly, with music and lyrics by Tim Minchin, which was later made into a movie starring Danny DeVito and Mara Wilson.  Matilda, The Musical cast is bookended by Producer Jill Williams (far left) and Director Kristy Beauvais (far right). (l-r front row) Raiden Ray, Birdie Douglass, Brodie Beauvais, Bo Schmid, Anika Williams and Macie Kennedy. (l-r back row) Tanner Boynton, Jill Williams, Santo Wagstaffe, Chloe Gaines, Emma Farkas, Gabbi Beauvais, Satya Finch, Bodhi Lae, Echo Hexum, Henry Whittenburg, Mahina Chotthesa-Sargis, Tallulah Gandee, Gaia De Mesquito, Sailor Ramos, and Kristy Beauvais. Not pictured: Maxine Hexum, Phoebe Krull, Allegra Frost, Sophie Sexton, Charlie Burrows, Lola Momoa, Wolf Momoa, Aurora Finetti, Paige Murillo, Freddie Fulcher, Virginia Burkons-Tackett, Cassius Brown, Farrah Whittenburg. Photo by Annemarie Donkin by ANNEMARIE DONKIN Youth theatre is flourishing in the Canyon and the latest extravaganza to hit the boards is Roald Dahl’s Matilda, the Musical for three performances at the Topanga Community Center (TCC), November 15-16. Matilda the Musical is a long-running London and Tony Award-winning stage musical based on the 1988 children’s novel of the same name by Roald Dahl. It was adapted by Dennis Kelly, with music and lyrics by Tim Minchin, which was later made into a movie starring Danny DeVito and Mara Wilson. Winner of more than 90 international awards, including 23 for Best Musical, Matilda is the story of an extraordinary little girl who, armed with a vivid imagination and a sharp mind, dares to take a stand and change her own destiny. Currently, the only other theatre to produce Matilda in Southern California is at the La Mirada Theatre in La Mirada. The Topanga production is the result of the efforts of FOCUSFish, the non-profit that brought the circus to the canyon with their aerial arts pavilion at the Cali Camp/Manzanita campus, which has now expanded to bring community children’s theater to Topanga. FOCUSFish founder and Matilda director Kristy Beauvais, along with her producing partner, Jill Williams, have been delighting audiences for more than ten years with their musical productions at Topanga Elementary Charter School (TECS). The pair has now collaborated to bring musical theater to other schools and communities around Topanga. As a result, Matilda will feature the talents of more than 35 student-actors, ages 7-13, from six schools, including the Manzanita School, TECS, Topanga Mountain School, Viewpoint, Waldorf, Paul Revere, and many homeschoolers. The show will include aerialists flying over a set that will be moved around by the actors themselves. “We will be doing the show “in the round” at TCC and will feature the famous Roald Dahl story with singing, dancing, trapeze, and acrobats,” Williams wrote. FOCUSfish has had aerial programming for all students at Manzanita since the school opened more than five years ago,” Beauvais wrote. “The four featured aerialists were chosen for their experience on the static trapeze, gained as a student of this program at the school. I had to know that they were going to be safe and mature enough to handle this big moment in the show. “Instead of the swings used in the Broadway version of the song, “When I Grow Up,” we have chosen to replace the swings with trapezes that the children will swing on and perform tricks on. Also, the roles of the Acrobat and Escapologist (performed by Lola and Wolf Momoa) will utilize the trapeze as a symbol of their love.” The cast rehearses Monday through Wednesday afternoons at Manzanita and in the FOCUSfish pavilion on campus. Williams said that there will be plenty of adults and parents who will also help with sound, lights, sets, and costumes. In fact, Kristy Beauvais’ 16-year-old daughter Gabbi adapted the musical parts for the actors. “When kids see the parents volunteer on their behalf, it is a good example [of how] to give back to the community,” Williams said. Roald Dahl’s Matilda the Musical, will play at the Topanga Community House on Friday, November 15 at 8 p.m. and Saturday, November 16 at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. The Topanga Community House is located at 1440 N. Topanga Canyon Blvd., Topanga, CA 90290. For information, contact Jill Williams at [email protected]; for tickets, go to https://matildatcc.brownpapertickets.com. |
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FOCUSfish is a nonprofit 501c3 organization | EIN # 26-0530647 | View Guidestar Profile
FOCUSfish is a nonprofit 501c3 organization | EIN # 26-0530647 | View Guidestar Profile