Meet the Cast and Crew

Griffin Allen ’25 is excited for his fifth production at Poly, understudying for Leaf Coneybear. Some of his favorite roles include Mr. Green in Poly’s Middle School production of Clue and Simba in The Lion King at his camp. As a sophomore, Griffin is enthusiastic to get to be a part of Spelling Bee with many of his friends, and he is happy to be getting back into musical theater! He is thankful to Ms. Watt, Mr. Doughty, and Mr. Turner for making this production possible.

Maggie Cochran ’26 is enthusiastic about being featured in her first Upper School musical, although, it is not her first show at Poly. In her 11 years at Poly, she has performed in two dance concerts and five musicals/plays. A freshman this year, she would like to thank her incredible friends and extremely supportive family for being at every show, even the ones with the small roles. It means more to her than you know. Enjoy the show! Raise your hand when they ask for volunteers. ;)

Tessa Cooper ’26 is so excited to be a part of the ensemble in her first Poly musical! Tessa’s first performance at Poly was in the play Lost Girl, as Krista. She has previously performed in Still Life with Iris, and the musical Willy Wonka. Tessa has been dancing for nine years and singing for as long as she can remember. She is so grateful for her family, friends, directors, and castmates for being so supportive during this musical.

Jasmine Donald ’24 is overjoyed to be making an appearance as Mitch Mahoney in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, which will be her third musical at Poly Prep. Throughout her Poly career, Jasmine has dedicated herself to the Upper School musicals, as well as several singing performances and concerts. She would like to thank her family, friends, and performing arts directors for showering her with unwavering support as she continues to involve herself in performances that she greatly enjoys.

Natasha Ellis ’23 is ecstatic to be punctuating her high school theater experience as Leaf Coneybear in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee! After six incredible years of performing arts at Poly, she’s extremely thankful for the joy and friends it’s brought her over the years. From her debut in Footloose as a twelve-year-old to performing Spelling Bee as a seventeen-yearold, she’s loved every moment. Natasha would like to thank Ms. Watt, Mr. Turner, and Mr. Doughty for always encouraging her artistically! Finally, she’d like to thank her family and friends for always supporting her!

Genevieve Fitzpatrick ’24 is thrilled to have her first leading role in a Poly Prep high school musical theater production. She has already been part of six musicals, four plays, and many other dance and song performances at Poly. She is passionate about performing, no matter how small the part she has, and this year, as a junior, Genevieve could not be more excited about taking part in Spelling Bee. Her family, friends, and directors are extremely supportive of her passions, which encourages her even more to do what she loves.

Cooper Flinn-Beane ’23 is elated to be playing the overzealous and sometimes overly ‘’excited’ Chip in his first Poly musical since Grease in 2020. He has been part of Poly Arts his entire high school career, as part of Blue Notes, A Cappella, and Advanced Concert Choir; not to mention the newly established Perfect Fifth. Though sadly this is his last production at Poly, Cooper is so thankful to his amazing theater dads, Lewis Flinn and Douglas Carter Beane, who have supported him in all of his arts endeavors. He would also like to thank Ms. Watt, Mr. Turner, and Mr. Doughty for all their support and for the gift of making Poly’s musicals happen.

Stavroula Gabriel ’25 is thrilled to be taking part in her sixth production at Poly including You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown, Godspell, and Curtains

She has also taken part in two shows at Poly Prep Performing Arts Camp where she played Grace in Annie, and Golde in Fiddler on The Roof. Stavroula is part of the ensemble, and is so happy to be playing a cheerleader. She is so thankful for the many opportunities to pursue all aspects of the arts she has had at Poly. She would love to thank everyone who helped make this show possible, as well as her family and friends who have come to support her.

Ryan Geisler ’25 is excited to be featured in her fourth musical at Poly!

As an extremely active member of the Arts program at Poly, she’s been featured in Godspell, The Outsider: New Short Plays, Curtains, and more. She’s been in multiple dance performances at Poly and is a recent member of Advanced Concert Choir. Her other acting credits include Beehive, Zombie Prom, Fiddler on the Roof, and Dreamland (French Woods Festival). Ryan would like to thank her parents for supporting her through her 10 years of doing theater, and her friends for always being there for her.

Isabelle Gerling ’25 is excited to be part of her eighth production at Poly Prep! She was featured in Clue, The Outsider: New Short Plays, Curtains, and more. Isabelle has been in Poly’s performing arts productions all her life and says she couldn’t have done it without her mom who has supported her and been a role model for her in performing arts.

Mia Gordon ’23 is enthused to be a part of her fourth poly production! She has been featured in Lost Girl as Nina, in the ensemble of Curtains, and Julie Jenkins in Museum. That’s not all of her involvement - she is also the co-president of the A Cappella club and a member of the Excellence in the Arts program. She would like to thank the whole theater community that has provided her with love and support and oh so many chuckles. Unfortunately, this will be her last Poly production and hopes to continue acting and singing in future endeavors! God bless America!

Tristan Kelley ’24 is excited to play Doug Panch. He would like to thank the directors for casting him, and the cast for being encouraging and nontoxic. He would also like to thank the arts faculty and his friends and family for their support in his artistic endeavors.Tristan looks forward to performing in this show and in the future with Blue Notes, A Cappella, Advanced Concert Choir, Perfect Fifth and the next musical. Enjoy the show!

Carolina Lisk ’26 is excited to be a part of her first Poly Prep Upper School Musical as a part of the ensemble! Carolina has been in four Poly productions throughout her Middle School experience and recently performed in Lost Girl as Cora. Carolina has been acting for as long as she can remember and could previously be seen in Thirteen, Cinderella, Peter Pan, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and more. She would like to thank all of her teachers, castmates, friends, and family for supporting her through her Spelling Bee experience. Enjoy our show!

Katie Lopez ’23 is so psyched to be a part of her eleventh (!) Poly production! As a member of the Excellence in the Arts Certificate program, Katie is also the director and co-president of Harmonics, a Coffeehouse coordinator and emcee, a bassist and vocalist in Jazz Band, and a self-produced singer-songwriter. She would like to thank the Poly Performing Arts Department for being the actual best. To quote the illustrious Ms. Watt, “She’d like to thank Mr. Doughty for allowing her to belt, and Mr. Turner for helping her be slightly more coordinated. Katie plans on not actually graduating this year, and will pretend to be a senior for the next three years in order to continue to participate in the musicals.”

Lulu McDonald ’24 is excited to be in another Poly musical after participating in both musicals and a play in her freshman and sophomore years. They are thrilled to be part of such a talented and fun cast and would like to thank their friends, family, and teachers for supporting their love of music and theater. She’s looking forward to playing her first lead role as an understudy and hopes you enjoy the show!

Adrianna Neal ’23 is ecstatic about playing Rona in Spelling Bee, but is saddened that this will be her last production at Poly. Adrianna wants to thank Poly and the arts faculty for helping her discover her passion for Musical Theatre, as she plans to pursue a BFA in Musical Theatre in college. Aside from participating in the musicals and plays, she is a member of advanced dance, advanced choir, Captain of the Dance Team, and co-president of Harmonics. She has thoroughly enjoyed her time as an arts student at Poly and hopes you enjoy the show!

Donald Shields ’25 is ecstatic to be participating in his second Poly musical, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, with his first being last year’s musical, Curtains. Donald joined Poly with no previous theater experience and since his first production, has found a great love of the Poly musicals. Donald would like to thank his parents for supporting him and all the wonderful people taking part in this year’s musical and those from the year prior, for opening his eyes to such a beautiful and welcoming community. He is excited to see what the Performing Arts Department has in store after this production.

Fiona Stephenson ’23 is thrilled to be appearing as Schwartzy in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, her last show at Poly. Previous theater credits at Poly include Lost Girl, Curtains, Museum, S ongs for A New World, Ghost Story, Grease, Our Town, You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Footloose. Some other theater credits include Totally Over You and Zombie Prom (Walnut Hill Summer Program) and Hairspray (Long Lake Camp). She is looking forward to playing Hope Cladwell in Urinetown at the Five Angels Theatre later this spring. She’s thankful to the Poly Performing Arts Department for giving her many opportunities to act, as well as act as assistant director (Lost Girl ).

Drew Waldman ’25 is delighted to be participating in her eighth show at Poly, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. As a sophomore having grown up performing on stage, she is ecstatic to be playing the understudy lead role of Marcy Park, and singing her first musical theatre solo of Upper School. She is a dedicated member to Poly performance, and thoroughly enjoys acting and singing. Drew is grateful to her loving parents who have provided her the opportunities to thrive under the guidance and support of the Poly Arts program, as well as her arts teachers who have been exceptionally nurturing throughout her time here at Poly.

Leo Yihan Wang ’23 is thrilled to be back in his last Poly production. His previous Poly theater credits include: Grease, Ghost Story, Songs for a New World, Museum, and Curtains. Outside of Poly, Leo is an actor and graphic designer for New York Mandarin Playback Theater Group. Leo is also interested in pursuing set design in college. He previously studied at NYU Tisch Production & Design Studio in summer 2022, and he was the set design assistant in NexGen Youth Theater’s Off-Broadway production of Rent. Leo is grateful for the opportunities from Poly’s Performing Arts Department in the past four years and he hopes everyone enjoys the show.

Jasper Whiteley ’25 is on cloud nine about his part in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, which will be his second Poly production. Due to a late need for actors in Poly’s fall production Lost Girl, Jasper took a punt by accepting the role of Slightly, and he hasn’t looked back since. Along with acting, Jasper is also a lifelong soccer player, and member of the school team, with aspirations of playing in college. Jasper has enjoyed learning on the fly and cannot wait to see where acting takes him.

Zeke Wise ’24 is so thrilled to be playing William Barfeé, as well as being the assistant musical director in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, his fourth show at Poly. After his role as Inspector Frank Cioffi in Poly’s production of Curtains, he was eager and ready to participate in another full Poly production. Zeke is a prevalent member of the Poly Arts community, participating in dance, Advanced Concert Choir, A Cappella, Blue Notes, and obviously, the musical in 2023. He has choreographed for ASC and performed in four concerts at Poly, and is excited to perform in many more.

PRODUCTION:

Cinthya Sanchez ’23 (Stage Manager) has been part of Poly productions since Middle School and is very excited to be the stage manager for her last one before graduation. Exploring the many aspects of theatre has always been very important to Cinthya, and she has found that stage and tech crew are where her heart lies. Having been part of tech crew for most of her productions, being Stage Manager is a new level of responsibility that Cinthya embraces. She is extremely grateful for the hard work of the cast on stage and of course, all of those behind the scenes.

Sadie Schoenberger ’25 (Assistant Director) is thrilled about her role as Assistant Director in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. Part of Poly’s Perfoming Arts program since sixth grade, this will be Sadie’s seventh show at Poly Prep and first time directing!! Sadie has always loved performing on Poly’s stages, and is incredibly grateful for the productions she’s been apart of over the past two years; performing as Christopher Belling in Curtains, joining Advanced Concert Choir, resident choreographer for ASC, and assistant directing alongside Ms. Watt this winter. She is incredibly grateful for these experiences that would not have been possible without the incredible support and guidance from her teachers in the arts.