With only a week of rehearsal until opening night, Homestead’s music and drama departments are working feverishly to mount their rendition of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s beloved musical Carousel. William Toney and Grace Bobber, junior, portray the title roles of Billy Bigelow and Julie Jordan, a couple who fell in love beneath the glimmering lights of Mrs. Mullins carousel, but are now struggling to make ends meet. Between cast, crew, and pit orchestra, Carousel is truly a group effort, with over 100 students involved.
So come one, come all, and meet the incredible artists who have created the production!
Few people are as dedicated to theatre, music and performance as Grace Bobber. With an incredible voice, unwavering spirit and fierce dedication, Bobber has worked hard to fulfill her role as lead character, Julie Jordan.
“Julie is a hard character to portray. She’s strong yet fragile, wise yet youthful. She has grown up on principles that I personally don’t always agree with,” Bobber said, “that’s often the best acting challenge though.”
In terms of the show as a whole, Bobber notes the difficult themes and complex emotions that make Carousel “a bit of a roller coaster.” Nevertheless, if you allow yourself to be swept away by the music,“ by the end it’s possible you’ll learn a bit about yourself and society as a whole, and how we all treat each other” Bobber said.
As with any major production, challenges are bound to emerge, and in Bobber’s case, she explains that her personal struggle has been finding the right motivations for her character. However, Bobber clarifies that “This show is more than just any one of us. The biggest challenge at the end of the day is to remember to make sure everyone is included, learning from our directors and each other, and having fun.” This being said, it is easy to see why the cast is so close.
With the excitement of opening night only days away, Bobber can only say that “it’s a night like no other for all of us. High excitement and the crowd only adds to the fun of this production. And if we make mistakes, c’est la vie. We just learn to push through them.”
By: Katie Bandurski
Drama Club Publicist
Senior-2014
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