Watertown Highschool Presents: MAMA MIA!

The Watertown Highschool Musical Theatre presented their last MAMA MIA show, based on the music of Sweedish pop group ABBA, on Saturday, Mach 26, 2022. The production was directed by Foster Evans Reese and was presented over two weekends with students playing different cast roles.

Producer Mindi Davidson said, “The students are amazingly talented, and watching them change roles and watching them just shine on stage has probably been my favorite part of this. Their energy comes out and they just shine.”

The play was cast in Dec. and rehearsals began in Jan. Director and choreographer Foster Evans Reese said, “It’s a pretty tight time frame but we were able to accomplish a lot. We rehearsed four times a week.”

This will be Reese’s 13th year at the school. He also works as a director for the Community Theather in Thomaston and Waterbury. When asked about the difference between working with highschool students and adults he said, “It’s a different type of energy when you’re working with highschool students. You just try to get the most out of them. They might not come with a lot of skill sets so there’s a lot more teaching involved.”

The play was comprised of freshmen through seniors. For senior Ruth Fomo, who played Sophie Sheridan, her last play was exceptionally special. Fomo said, “It was such an amazing experience; getting to share it with Clara and all of my other leads. I’m just so grateful for being given this opportunity at the school, especially in the theater department. I’m really going to miss it.”

Junior Clara Pizzolorusso, who played Donna Sheridan, also shared some last thoughts about her experience in the play. Pizzolorusso said, “This was such an amazing experience and such a great production to be a part of. Out of all of the shows that I’ve ever taken part in, this has definitely been one of the most monumental steps that I’ve ever made and I just have so much respect and admiration for everyone in this cast and everyone who was a part of this production. I’m so thankful for everyone here.”

As the students only had a couple of months to prepare for the musical, a lot of hard work and diligence were required. This was seen and felt by the audience who experienced an exceptional show.

Davidson said, “They absolutely transform into what you see on stage. It’s a shocking thing to watch them transform and go from being a highschool kid into what you see on that stage. It is amazing, they are such great actors and actresses.”

Through the success of this play, students faced some obstacles due to COVID-19. Junior Erin Pienczykowski, a member of the stage crew, said, “Last year we really struggled because we had no new Freshmen since we didn’t publicize it enough. Now, we’re back and we’re able to recruit a lot of new people this year. Everyone has learned and grown so much and I think we have done a lot better; we’ve seen a big improvement in this show.”

The show would not be complete without the help of the stage crew who played a significant part in the overall picture of the play.

Junior Jocelyn Vangas shared her experience as a stage crew member. Vangas said, “This is my first time doing stage crew. I am definitely doing this next year. It’s so much fun and I’m so upset that I didn’t do it earlier because this is one of the most fun things ever. This is the perfect fit for me.”

As the last show of the school year was presented and students are inspired to join future plays, Reese said, “Tell your kids that theater can help them later in life. It helps promote a lot of self-esteem. I really do think that later in life it can help you out.”