A NOTE FROM THE DIRECTOR The better part of 2001 was spent shuttling between New York and Toronto, taking dance classes, perfecting pirouettes (this all in the days before Mulgrave’s ‘Baking Buffet’), attending auditions and finding the odd piano bar to sing in. New York, that independent nation-state to my eye, a magical place unlike anywhere else on our planet, felt broken. I still remember the moment on the morning of September 11th, practicing a time-step combination for Crazy for You, when our artistic director anxiously told the cast to ‘just go home’. It was everyone’s New York horror story. When Sutton Foster came onstage in 2002, I pegged her for the Tony right from her very first note, and I was right, along with Thoroughly Modern Millie, which won Best Musical. Millie isn’t, in my opinion, masterfully crafted in song and lyric, like every single Sondheim musical, nor does it directly represent any great diversity or movement of protest (which is so badly needed these days!) musicals such as Rent (‘Seasons of Love’), The Color
Purple (‘I’m Here’) or Ragtime (‘Back to Before’), but it was in its own right a protest musical against the events of 2001. In its own fun and fancy way, Millie gave New York hope and helped New Yorkers overcome. Eleanor Calbes trained me in voice and she gave me, albeit entirely ethnically unsuited, my first role as Lun Tha in The King and I. Eleanor’s New York success story is a memorable one involving a young singer who landed the role of Liat, a relatively minor part in South Pacific on Broadway. However; after Richard Rodgers heard her sing, Calbes (‘Younger than Springtime’), may she rest in peace, became the first soloist ever to perform the song Bali H’ai. I thank her for teaching me to ‘sing from the back’ and for inspiring my love of theatre. I hope to have done the same to some small degree with these children. A common societal misconception is that Musical Theatre actors tend to suddenly ‘break out’ in song and dance. The truth is, when the emotion from acting becomes too strong, that emotion must be expressed through voice, and when that song can no longer be contained, the body just needs to move. I hope our students and your children will give you a sense of that emotion tonight and that you will be equally proud of their confidence, risk-taking, humour and talent. -Jamie Caton, Director
PLAY DESCRIPTION It’s 1922, and small-town girl Millie Dillmount has just arrived in New York City, ready to make her dreams come true. Millie’s plan is simple: find a job as a secretary for an eligible bachelor, and then marry him. It doesn’t take long, however, for Millie’s ‘thoroughly modern’ plan to go awry. Her conniving landlady plots to kidnap Millie’s best friend and sell her to her buyer ‘Black Spider’, her wealthy boss seems entirely uninterested in her flirtations, and -- worst of all -- the man with whom she falls head over heels in love doesn’t have a penny to his name. Winner of the 2002 Tony Award for Best Musical, Thoroughly Modern Millie is a bright, funny, and charming musical comedy -- a heartfelt valentine to New York City and all of us who love her.
CAST
SARAH GUNN
ELLA DIXON
Millie Dillmount
Mrs. Meers
ULWIANA MEHTA-MALHOTRA
KENNEDY KOPKE Miss Flannery
Dorothy Brown
RAIHAN HASSAM
ABTIN ZEHTAB
GRACE WOOTTEN
FRANK LU
Trevor Graydon
Jimmy Smith
Briana
Charles
CHANTELLE BREWSTER
AUDREY WONG-FRICK
VANESSA LIU
AMANDA NIU
Ruth
Rita
Ethel
Lucille
GENEVIEVE DYMENT
LARA MARKTHALER
COCO MANDERSON
LOLA CABRAL
Cora
Alice
Gloria
Female Modern/ Dance Captain
KATE VRSNIK
SARA GANSCHOW
MAIA RAYNOR
ALIA MANGALJI
Female Modern
Female Modern
Female Modern
Female Modern
MARTINA REVELLO LERENA
SOPHIE SHERKAT
KIANA PARSA
DEANNA NAEMI
Female Modern
Female Modern
Female Modern
CARRIE XUE
JASMINE WANG
DEXTER MACMANUS
Female Modern
Female Modern
Male Modern/ Dance Captain
NICOLAAS VAN DER VORM
Female Modern
Male Modern
YUPENG ZHANG
AMIR MOJARRADI
BEN DYMENT
HARRY TETRAULT
Male Modern
Male Modern
Male Modern
Male Modern
CHORUS
GABRIELLA CANEPARI
AVA MYRING
RAY XUE
ANNA WANG
CONSTANCE YANG
LILA BEAUPRE
SADIE COX
EMMA DIETZ
JAIDEN GILL
KAI KLIMEK
CANDY LI
MADELINE MCLEOD
LILY MEHIO
AMY REN
LISA SABA
KIANA BAGHERPOUR
JADA CHANG
NAVIK DESAI
HAOMING DU
SARA JANMOHAMEDSUNDERJI
ALICE PENG
SHAIV RAMDHANI
JENNA TALIB
WENDY XU
PRODUCTION Jamie Caton - Choreographer/Set Designer Claude McLean - Music Director Emily Zuidema - Music Director, Scenic Painter and Backstage Manager Tish Jolley - Scenic Painter Scott Zechner - Set Design & Construction and Technical Director Nicola Read - Set Design (Assistant) Matt Kennedy - Digital Film/Videographer/Set Construction Elizabeth Kok - Properties Master Khayali Dhanji - Stage Manager Sophie Yang - Stage Crew Amin Gulamani - Stage Crew Aidan Deslippe - Lighting Design Tudor Rosu - Lighting Operator Kameel Ahamed - Follow Spot Operator Christian Lovell - Head Scenic Painter Rhonda Beaupre - Scenic Painter Michelle Myring - Scenic Painter Adam Morrow - Scenic Painter Rosa Yip - Scenic Painter Susan Cabral - Key Makeup Artist Jennifer Pan - Makeup Artist Tina Zhou - Makeup Artist Mark Steffens - Photography Tyson Poole - Poster & Programme Design Juliette Carr - Box Office Laura Darch - Communications
SPECIAL THANKS JOHN WRAY Thank you for your support of theatre and music in the Junior School. JUNIOR SCHOOL LEADERSHIP TEAM Your encouragement means so much! Thank you for your support. JUNIOR SCHOOL STAFF Your help in getting our actors where they needed to be was invaluable. So many of you rolled up your sleeves to make Millie happen. MARK STEFFENS Anything we needed, you were there for us. From lunch to stunning photos, thank you for your time and talent. MICHELLE MYRING For tying up every loose end, thank you for all of your help. OUR PARENTS Thank you for your support, for the costumes, for the rehearsal pick-ups, for running lines, and for encouraging us along the way.
SCOTT ZECHNER A special thanks to you! For caring so much about the production and the sheer amount of time and effort you put into the set design, lighting & theatre management, we are very grateful. For your consistent support and encouragement, thank you Natassja By, Judy Markthaler and Sarah Bernstein. To the makeup ladies who made us all look glam, thank you to Susan Cabral, Jennifer Dixon, Lorena Mangalji, and Shannon Vrsnik. For your set construction support, huge thanks to Nate Zuidema. Mike Lopez, Farhad Najafichalestrari and the Facilities team, thank you for your brawn and patience with our production.
“Each day it’s free admission to those who dream You set your sights all the way upstream Off you go, for you know that cream will rise Make that wish, seek that thrill Come and get it, ‘cause you always will Strike up the band Only in New York”