CHS's 'Little Mermaid' draws 2,000 attendees

The 2018 Chester High School production of Disney's "The Little Mermaid" was seen by approximately 2,000 people over the four-day viewing period. The event opened Thursday March 15 and closed with a Sunday afternoon matinee March 18.

CHS Theatre Director, Brenda Coop said, "I won't have exact figures until later next week after I have a chance to crunch the numbers but based upon seating availability it appears as if we sold approximately 2,000 seats for the show. At least one night was totally sold out. We had to turn people away to stay in line with fire code regulations."

The cast totaled approximately 80 different roles, many cast members played dual roles. There was a production crew of approximately 45 people, several of which also had dual roles. The set and prop crew included 20 students while there were 25 students who worked in the hair and makeup department.

Chester High School has been doing musicals for several decades and with the exception of one show, there has always been a live orchestra. This is made possible primarily by the utilization of members of the community who volunteer their musical talents to provide the best music possible for each show.

The orchestra is always directed by Steve Colonel, CHS Band and Choral Director. He recruits members of the orchestra depending upon the needs and musical demands of the respective show. Disney's, "The Little Mermaid" required an orchestra of 12 members.

Dr. Larry Soellner of Chester said, "We are so lucky here at Chester High School to have a live orchestra for our musicals. Not every school has that luxury. It adds so much to the show and we are so thankful to have such willing musicians to provide live music for our musicals."

Many times the orchestra consists of solely adult members, many of which are college-trained. This year four high school students qualified to perform in the orchestra including Jessica Handel, flute; Caitlin Elsea, alto saxophone; Brock Stinson, trumpet; and Nate Rains, French horn.

Joseph Walczyk, a SIU Graduate Student in Music Education, made the trip each performance from Carbondale to play lead trumpet. Former Chester music teacher, Jane Kruse played bass on keyboard. Sue Colonel, the Chester Grade School Band Director, played clarinet/bass clarinet.

Other members of the 2018 orchestra included college-trained musicians Jane Stallman and Vicky Beers who played keyboards. Both are music directors of their respective churches; Stallman at St. John and Beers at First United Methodist.

Dr. Jim Beers and Melanie Johnson manned the drums and percussion section which was extremely demanding for this show. Both are college-trained and play periodically for various musical events in the area. Finally, Debbie Bernardoni of Sparta played piano both for the early stage rehearsals and in the orchestra.

Steve Colonel said, "I have received and continue to receive numerous compliments on how professional-sounding the orchestra was. We are very fortunate here in Chester to have access to adult musicians to help with our orchestras for the various musicals throughout the years".

Most audience members to watch the 2018 production were very impressed with the costumes used in "Little Mermaid". Many people thought that the costumes had to be rented because they were so beautiful and authentic. Not so! All costumes were created by Mrs. Mary Liefer and her fantastic crew of seamstresses.

Mary Liefer said, "I had a wonderful crew of seamstresses who worked hard to create all of the costumes. I started from scratch and created most of the designs myself. Mary Long, Carolyn Venable and Laverne Misselhorn worked tirelessly to help make it all happen. Believe me, by the end of the preparation period our fingers were raw."

Other seamstresses that assisted with the sewing duties included Sandy Gretzmacher, Pat Ohlau, Sharon Ohlau, Linda Marcinkowska, Kyra Hecht, and Valerie Blechle.

Disney's "The Little Mermaid" consisted of two acts with a total of 23 scenes. Act I has 10 scenes while Act II had 13 scenes. There were a total of 25 songs in Act I and 29 songs in Act II for a grand total of 54 different songs during the show. It was quite a demanding show for both orchestra and vocalists; but very uplifting and entertaining for the audience.

Elizabeth Soellner, a junior, blossomed in the lead role as Ariel and Zachary Zappa, a senior, stepped-up in the male lead as Prince Eric. Both were exquisite for first-time leading roles both vocally and in their acting roles.

Senior Mitchell Colonel is no stranger to acting and singing and did a wonderful job of portraying the comedic Sebastian. Jacob Wingerter, a junior, really did a great job of acting and singing in his role as the stately King Triton. He created both a kingly stature as king of the ocean and a compassionate side as Ariel's loving father.

Lydia Heck, a sophomore, shined in her first major role on stage as Triton's sinister sister, Ursula. Her acting was impressive while her vocals were on spot in her solo numbers. Jacob Hoffman, a senior, was very comical as the blundering seagull Scuttle and newcomer to the CHS stage, freshman Blake Zappa, played the heartwarming role as Flounder.

The "Mer Sisters" or Ariel's sisters included Ashley Hennrich, Emma Naeger, Hanna Bert, Gwendolyn Sterrett, Montana Rose and Melody Colonel. Their contribution to the musical was both comical and musical as they provided both laughter and vocal backup to the demanding musical requirements of the show.

The very talented cast was completed by seniors Kylie Liefer and Abby Myers as Flotsam and Jetsam, Ursula's henchmen. Grimsby, played by the seasoned actor, Andy Bryant, was a backbone of the show.

Kaleb Hughes was Chef Louis. Pilot was played by Lance Bohnert, and Ariel Throop and Alison Venus as Windward and Leeward.

Include 10 gull dancers, six sailors and eight chefs as supporting cast members and the 2018 CHS cast and crew achieved a superb show that ranked "right-up-there" with former CHS classics such as "Music Man" and "Fiddler on the Roof".

Hats off to the cast, crew, support staff, orchestra and directors of the 2018 Chester High School Musical Production of Disney's "The Little Mermaid". It was a great week of performances and pleased what will certainly be record numbers of audiences. Now to begin planning for the 2020 CHS musical!