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March 6, 2015
Valley View presents ‘Into the Woods’ this weekend
by Christopher Cornell ADVANTAGE EDITOR
The intense, melodically complex musical comedy-drama “Into the Woods,” including lyrics by the legendary Stephen Sondheim, is not a production a theater company — even a professional one — takes on lightly. But if there is one high school in the area that is up to the challenge, it’s the team at Valley View, who have already presented “Phantom” and “West Side Story.” “Into The Woods” will be presented Friday and Saturday, March 6-7 at 7 p.m. and Sunday, March 8, at 3 p.m. in the high school auditorium, 1 Columbus Drive in Archbald. Tickets are $10; $8 for students. “Jovanna Rusnak (the show’s co-director), Nick Lazor (in charge of choreography and staging) and I met during summer months and narrowed the choices to ‘The Music Man,’ ‘Into the Woods’ and ‘Mary Poppins,’ explained director Gina Lupini. “We chose the show that best fits our students and their abilities. We contiunually strive to challenge the students by choosing shows that not only showcase their talents but also offer something unique to the community. We met again in late August and decided ‘Into the Woods’ would be this year’s best match.” The unusual form of the show was a challenge, she said. “It’s not a straight-cut, dialogue/song/dialogue/song performance. The music and lines are intertwined and timing is crucial. Each character must be not only strong actors/actresses, they must be strong vocally as well. At some point in the show, each character sings alone.” Lupini said many members of the production team are Valley View teachers and have worked on numerous shows together. But this will be a swan song of sorts for Rusnak, who retired from teaching five years ago, but but has remained on the team. “This is her last production as co-director,” Lupini said. Other teachers working on the play include Amy Wilensky (art), Ken Rupp (sound/lighting), Brandon Dodson (set construction), Joe Joyce (stage crew), Mary Gowat (costume coor-
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From left, kneeling: (stepsisters) Cassie Dumas, Diane Piccolino, (Cinderella) Hali Bargella, (Jack) Zac Swartout, (Little Red Ridinghood) and Julia Gillow. Standing: (Cinderella’s Prince), Kasidy Leggin, (Step Mother) Leah Natushko, (Cinderella’s Father) Paulie Vanvestraut, (Rapunzel) Liz Simmons, (Rapunzel’s Prince) Ryan McGinty, (Jack’s Mother) Julie Krupka, (Witch) Sarah Kandel, (Baker) Jonathan Mengoni and (Baker’s Wife) Gabriella Tolerico.
dinator) and Michael O’Malley (accompanist). Lupini also is grateful for “the dedicated parents who are there day after day helping with costumes, set design and props. And, of course, we would not be able to do any of this without the wonderful support of our superintendent and administration.” The cast includes a number of graduating seniors, some who plan to study music and/ or theater. The students who have already been accepted to college include Zac Swartout (American Musical and Dramatic Academy), Gabby Tolerico (Temple University), Julia Gillow (Pittsburgh University), Elizabeth Pryal (Bloomsburg University), Ava Gambucci (Temple University) and Melanie McAndrew (Pittsburgh University). Seniors in the show who have not yet decided on a college include Jonathan Mengoni, Sarah Kandel, Leah Natushko, Breanna Pegula, Shelby Snigar and Dakota Yoh. There are 113 students who contributed to this year’s show, including more than 70 who built, painted or moved the sets, assisted with lighting and sound or play in the orchestra. “This year’s preparation was different than
that of previous years,” Lupini said. “For the past few weeks, all the student participants — whether cast, stage crew, art crew, sound/lighting, set design — were working together, placing the final touches all at the same time. They were able to see one another in action and how their role contributes to the overall production.” That concept is reflected in this quote by Sondheim, which Lupini found as they were working on the show: “We cannot act in isolation, nor should we want to, for we can accomplish individually only a fraction of the things we can accomplish communally. Appreciate what you have, realize what you want, accept what you can’t have, but discover what you are capable of. It is only when we start accepting each other’s faults and acknowledging each other’s strengths, then we can join together to combat the giants that face us all.” “The messages [in the show] are many,” Lupini said, “as well as the lessons learned. We as educators pride ourselves on presenting not only an entertaining production, but one that the students can learn from well beyond the time the last curtain has closed.”