Chicago: High School Edition
at Archmere Academy

Reviewed on February 29, 2020

Lauren Unterberger
Mount Pleasant High School
Submitted for publication to DEC Published 1

Archmere Rocks Chicago!

Greed! Corruption! Violence! Exploitation! Adultery! Treachery! Archemere's production of "Chicago: High School Edition" provided all those things we all hold near and dear to our hearts!

"Chicago: High School Editio"n tells the sensationalist and scandalous story of Roxie Hart, a vaudeville wannabe, and Velma Kelly, a vaudeville has-been, on their respective paths to the front page. Their method? Murder, of course.

Since the first Broadway production of "Chicago" in 1975, audiences have been jazz square-ing in their seats to John Kander and Frank Ebb's scintillating score. Archmere's production was satirical, stylized and sharp. Somewhere along the way, the line between life and performance faded until they were one and the same, as seen through a very flexible member of the Dancer Chorus who played a table!

The two stars of the show were Alyssa Noval and Serena Martin as Velma Kelly and Roxie Hart, who belted their respective hearts out, often while dancing in perfect rhythm with the music. Noval's thoughtful portrayal of Velma as sassy yet desperate and emotionally-guarded created layers of complexity and sympathy, which is hard to do for a murderer! On the other side of the Cook County Jail, Serena Martin's Roxie Hart was sweet, innocent, and vulnerable, until you looked in her eyes. Martin's bright and alert eyes were the window into the true calculating and focused nature of her Roxie, as though underneath the damsel in distress facade awaited a sociopath, ready to do whatever it takes to get ahead.

In addition to those two "scintillating sinners," it was Riley McAvinue's scene-stealing performance as Billy Flynn, the "Silver-Tongue Prince of the Courtroom," that provided an over-dramatic and goofy levity. McAvinue admirably committed himself fully to the ridiculousness of his character, to the point of ripping off his own pants (I warned you it was scandalous!) without breaking character at all.

The supporting cast was made up of several stars as well: Alexandra Williamson, as Hunyak, did two seemingly impossible things at the same time: danced on pointe in ballet shoes for 2 minutes while delivering an emotionally gripping monologue in Hungarian. For Madison Downey, who was another merry murderess, her husband was not the only thing she killed! While other members of the chorus lost energy or engagement during large ensemble scenes, Downey was always on, active, and engaged. Even Downey standing still looked like choreography, since every move she made was with conscious intention towards her character and the plot.

Alexis Rendel's costume work (in addition to her work as the choreographer and member of the Dancer Chorus -- you go girl!) was thoughtful and impactful. Her choice of color story in dresses highlighted the difference between the dark Jazz Slayer Velma Kelly and the bright and doe-eyed Reformed Sinner Roxie Hart. Despite some difficulty in hearing the harmonies in larger ensemble numbers, the leads could always be heard for the entirety of the musical.

With its flashy production and stylized choreography, the cast and crew of Archmere Academy's production of "Chicago: High School Edition" made the "Old Razzle Dazzle" new again!

Morgan Whittam
Cape Henlopen High School
Submitted for publication to DEC Published 2

The bright lights of Vaudeville shone at Archmere Academy last night as shots were fired, high notes were belted, and dancers executed moves that would have made theatrical legend Bob Fosse proud. Archmere Academy's production of "Chicago High School Edition" transported the audience back to the 1920s and delivered fabulous murder, laugh out loud comedy, and all that jazz.

"Chicago: High School Edition" is a classic musical that tells the story of young murderer Roxie Hart as she inflates her "tragic" story to the media in order to clear her name and one day make it to Vaudeville. This musical, with book by Fred Ebb and Bob Fosse, lyrics by Fred Ebb, and music by John Kander, is originally from the seventies and set in the twenties, but manages to stay relevant by touching on current topics such as the short attention span of the media.

Archmere Academy's production was delightful. Their classic interpretation of the show kept the audience entertained with its fast-pace, skilled dancing, and fun musical numbers.

Serena Martin brought wonderful life to the timeless Roxie Hart. Her strong, jazzy voice was a pleasure to listen to and her strong acting choices made her fun to watch on stage. Riley McAvinue also gave a memorable performance as Billy Flynn, with a lot of charisma and impressive comedic timing.

The supporting characters, such as Velma Kelly (Alyssa Noval), The Emcee (Stephen D'Antonio), and Matron Mama Morton (Julia Parisi), helped round out the solid performances of the cast. They each created interesting and memorable characters and added their own flavor to the production. One stand out aspect of this show was the quality of the Dancer Chorus. These nine dancers executed Alexis Rendel's challenging but fun choreography almost flawlessly. The remainder of the ensemble, though somewhat weak vocally, added sufficiently to the production, their strongest number being "We Both Reached for the Gun."

Impressively, the majority of the technical aspects of the show were designed by students. The lights and sound, though not perfect, were effective and did not detract from the show. It was at times difficult to hear the ensemble, however. The props were all appropriate and believable, and the many newspapers bearing the bold headline "Roxie Rocks Chicago" were visually appealing and added a uniqueness to the props. As a whole the costumes were well designed, and few had issues large enough to become distracting. The Dancer Chorus in particular had flattering costumes. The permanent set had no pieces brought on and off except for a few chairs brought on by the actors, but as far as I could tell the stage managers were calling the show smoothly.

Overall my night in Vaudeville was an enjoyable one, and I commend Archmere Academy for their job well done.