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Washington Evening Journal
111 North Marion Avenue
Washington, IA 52353
319-653-2191
‘Goosebumps’ Delivers Fun, Mystery And Memories
The weekend of March 1-2 finally arrived! The hard work and long hours of practice resulted in memorable performances from both experienced actors and musicians and those new to the Performing Arts Masqued Tigers. The crew members stayed on task and supported the cast at every turn. The audience enthusiastically followed all the twists and turns of the plot.
The plot of “Goosebumps: Phantom of the Auditorium” contains many events that threaten the production from completing. It turns out that our cast and crew suffered some setbacks as well. Working together, everything turns out marvelously.
Matthew Rogers, who plays a critical role as the second phantom became ill. One hour before the matinee on Saturday, he had to give up and relinquish the role. Averie Senn stepped up and learned the solo song and the speaking parts so the show could go on. Everyone quickly understood how important the phrase, “Break a leg” could become. Fortunately, Averie was deeply involved in the production serving many roles. This year, she wanted to be Stage Manager. Being stage manager means you are familiar with every part of the play. Little did she know how valuable this knowledge would be as she reworked her roles.
Getting back to the story, Lanie Szewczyk, as director of the musical Ms. Walker did a great job of overcoming all the rumors and history of her family involvement in the failure of the first production of the play. She also had to overcome the ambitions of the star’s understudy. Khloe Upton as Brooke Rogers, female lead, had to keep on her toes to prevent her understudy from stealing her part. Zeke, male lead played by Trayton Schuster gave a realistic performance of the actor who is in the play for fun but sometimes negligent artist. A stellar performance was given by Josiah Denney as Emile. This homeless person turns out to be the rogue trying to stop the play by sending mysterious messages to characters to frighten them into quitting.
The “thank yous” at the end of the performances were numerous. The entire Kracht family helped out with building and painting flats. Jon Mumford was always on hand for technical emergencies. Kevin McCabe was go-fer extraordinaire. Naming just a few doesn’t detract from the fact that it takes a village to support its students. The community can look forward to many more years of all-star effort by the upcoming Masqued Tigers.
The end of the Spring musical or play is always difficult. It is Senior night and time to say goodbye. The 2024 seniors have been a force throughout their school careers. This small group will be sorely missed. Suppressed tears were apparent on the faces of the Director Kati DeLlanos, Production Manager Tori Kenel and many of the five seniors taking their final bow. Pride was the expression on the faces of the senior parents and perhaps a bit of relief as their students announced their plans for the future.
