Actors sail historically accurate journey with the help of Andrew McKeough

Actors sail historically accurate journey

By Aly Mingione, Staff Reporter, The Spoke

Don’t look for Rose and Jack on board this Titanic. Unlike the 1997 blockbuster film, Conestoga’s spring musical “Titanic: The Musical” is not the romantic tale starring Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio. Instead, it tells the true story of the 1912 sinking of the luxury ocean liner.

McKeough reads a book while approving the Titanic set
Karolis Panavas | The Spoke

“Titanic: The Musical” incorporates many characters who actually sailed on the Titanic during its maiden voyage 100 years ago. From the set builders to the musicians, everyone involved in ’Stoga’s “Titanic” is working to make this production as historically accurate as possible.

“There’s not much of a love story in this musical,” junior Stephen Christner said. In “the movie ‘Titanic,’ the story line is completely different and they get a lot of the historical facts wrong.”

Some of the cast members said that portraying their characters is a challenge, but it is important to them to transform the Conestoga stage into an accurate portrayal of the 1912 ocean liner.

“We are not just playing a character who was made up out of [someone’s] imagination,” said freshman Noah Berkowitz, who plays the character John Jacob Astor, one of the richest men on the ship. “We’re real people, so we want to try to convey them as realistically as [possible].”

The historical accuracy of “Titanic: The Musical” distinguishes this show from others director Nicole Gerenyi has produced at Conestoga. This aspect of the musical also makes the production more challenging for many of the student actors and actresses involved.

“It’s hard to find historical accuracy in something that happened 100 years ago,” Gerenyi said. “Even the news headlines [historians] find contradict each other.”

Nevertheless, Gerenyi is working with the cast and crew to realistically recreate the tragedy.

“It’s a real historical event, so all of these people existed,” Gerenyi said. “It’s cool to build a character off of a photo that you can find online.”

The makeup crew works with photographs of the real passengers to transform the actors into those characters.  Senior Geoffrey Hegg must spend hours in the makeup chair to better portray his 67-year-old character, Isidor Straus.

“We’re going to try [to] make me look like [Straus],” Hegg said. “I’ll probably be given a fake beard and fake glasses.”

In addition to their appearances, the actors also attempt to imitate their characters’ various accents. From German to old English, many cast members have to learn an entirely new way of speaking.

“It was 1912, so even if [my character] had an American accent, it would be different from the one we speak with today,” Berkowitz said.

Considering all “the information that we have, it’s going to be as historically accurate as we can [make it],” McKeough said. “It’s going to be one of the best interpretations.”In order to help the show stay true to the facts, freshman Andrew McKeough has volunteered to be the show’s historian. McKeough, who has studied the history of the Titanic since first grade, helps Gerenyi and the cast convey historical information about the Titanic.

Although straying from historical accuracy is sometimes necessary to adapt the story into a musical, Gerenyi hopes to adapt the show to ’Stoga without bypassing the true story.

Overall, we want to “pay [our] respects to the people that were on that ship,” Gerenyi said.

Aly Mingione can be reached at amingione@stoganews.com.

Close-knit cast of “Titanic” bonds both on and off the boat

By Courtney Kennedy, Staff Reporter, The Spoke

The curtain rises and a set appears. But this is not the opera house that served as the background of last year’s “Phantom of the Opera”–instead, the deck of a ship appears. A ship, as the audience knows, doomed to sink due to an iceberg collision.

From Feb. 29-March 3, ‘Stoga Theatre performed “Titanic,” based on the 1912 sinking of the “unsinkable ship.” In this ensemble-based production, the cast used both each other and the audience to create a captivating experience for all involved.

“In our Friday night show, the audience saw the boat for the first time and started clapping, even though we hadn’t reached the end of the show,” freshman Zoe Colbert said. “It really energized and motivated us [to perform].”

The cast had been working since December to put on a flawless performance. What started as only a few rehearsals a week for the large ensemble quickly turned into a daily practice with lines, music, and spacing every day after school and on Saturdays on the weekends.

“We had a lot of Saturday rehearsals,” freshman Sarah Whelan said. “They were always nine to three, so we basically just lost our Saturdays, but it was fun because we had all of our friends there with us.”

The group grew very close over the two months of preparation, and was a critical component of the on-stage chemistry of the actors and actresses as well, according to Whelan, who noted that participating in the musical allowed her to form many new friendships.

“Being a freshman going in, you don’t know a lot of the people and you meet so many awesome friends,” Whelan said. “I can’t even begin to describe it. The group is so much closer then any other show I’ve ever been in or even any other thing I have ever been involved with in the past. It’s a family, and it’s hard to do that with over fifty people.”

This chemistry was evident to all once the production got on board. The show is now eligible for twenty-two awards from the Greater Philadelphia Cappies after being chosen by critics, including the award for best ensemble (third class passengers), song (Mr. Andrew’s Vision), orchestra, set and musical, as well as those for individual performances. Critics will then vote on these and other candidates to determine the five in each category that then become nominees for the awards.

“Titanic” has been chosen for the following possible nominations:

Sound: Ryan Zmiewski

Lighting: Ian Starner, Sergo Retif, Carly Meyer, Jack Guitman

Sets: Frank Gauthier, Aleign Dolph, Shanna Luedtke, Ian Starner

Make-up: ‘Stoga Titans

Stage Crew: Frank Gauthier, Arleigh Dolph, Shanna Ludke, Sam Winfield

Orchestra: ‘Stoga Pit Orchestra

**Creativity: Andrew McKeough**

Ensemble in a Musical: Third-class passengers

Featured Actress: Chrissy Bradley

Featured Actor: Alex Carre

Dancer: Kanishka Rao

Male Dancer: Dance Ensemble: “Latest Rag”

Female Vocalist: Julianna Quazi

Male Vocalist: Matt Fell

Comic Actress in a Musical: Emily Omrod

Comic Actor in a Musical: George Stern

Supporting Actress in a Musical: Nell Hoban

Supporting Actor in a Musical: Ben Sheppard

Lead Actress in a Musical: Laura McCauley

Lead Actor in a Musical: Stephen Christner

Song: “Mr. Andrew’s Vision”

Musical: Titanic

Courtney Kennedy can be reached at ckennedy@stoganews.com.

Broadway Critic: ‘The Little Mermaid’

By Tim Croner
Staff Reporter, The Spoke

After transporting audiences to an enchanted castle, the African grasslands, an ancient Egyptian kingdom and the chimneys of London, Disney Theatrics moved under the sea in their newest musical, “The Little Mermaid.”

“The Little Mermaid” opened on Broadway in January 2008, nearly 20 years after the film it is based on was released in theaters in 1989.

The show’s score features some of the film’s well known songs, including “Part of Your World,” “Kiss the Girl” and “Les Poissons,” but also boasts 10 original songs written for the stage show.

The score is definitely one of the strongest parts of the show, as the underscoring evokes a feeling of being underwater and the songs advance the plot and develop the characters’ emotions.

The lead role of Ariel is performed by Sierra Boggess, who is making her Broadway debut. Her performance is strong throughout, and she expertly conveys to the audience Ariel’s conflicting feelings about the land and the sea and her longing to be a part of the human world. Her rendition of “Part of Your World,” one of the film’s most recognizable songs, will not disappoint fans of the movie.

Heidi Blickenstaff performs the role of the villainous Ursula with such strength, it makes it nearly impossible to imagine anyone else in the part. Her vocals were very impressive during her opening number, “I Want the Good Times Back.” Her truly evil and commanding performance of the Act 1 finale, “Poor Unfortunate Souls,” was the highlight of the show.

Since the winter of 2008, Wayne, Pennsylvania native, and Tredyffrin-Easttown School District student, Andrew McKeough has played the role of the yellow and blue striped fish, and Ariel's best friend, Flounder. Andrew's performance is second to none. While rolling around on skates, Andrew sings his way through the show giving a five star performance. McKeough is on stage about the same amount of time that Ariel is, and sings in many of the same songs. McKeough is a student at Valley Forge Middle School, and is currently living with his family in their New York apartment, where they live during the time that McKeough is on Broadway.

The sets and costumes of the production were not as impressive as the cast. It’s understandably difficult to create an entire underwater world on a Broadway stage, but many of the costumes, especially the tails for the mermaids, could have been better executed. The underwater sets, which mostly consisted of plexiglass “waves” that moved around the stage, were fairly effective, but the transitions to the “world above” and the sets for the land scenes were a bit sloppy.

Despite the slight faults in the production, it’s still an enjoyable show. It may not be the most artistic or the most life-changing show that Broadway has to offer, but it certainly has some excellent performances, a well-known score and it has something that most everyone will enjoy. Sometimes, all you need is a little bit of pure entertainment, and that’s exactly what “The Little Mermaid” offers.

Tim Croner can be reached at tcroner@stoganews.com.

Printed originally on p. 18 of the March 27, 2009 issue of The Spoke

Broadway for Dummies: A Guide to Seeing a Broadway Show

Broadway for Dummies: 

A Guide to Seeing a Broadway Show

By Tim Croner

Staff Reporter, The Spoke

Buying Tickets

There are several different ways to purchase tickets for a Broadway show. The easiest way is through the Internet. Ticketmaster.com sells tickets for certain shows, but Telecharge.com is the best website to visit when buying tickets. Web sites such as broadwaybox.com and playbill.com offer discounts for many shows on Broadway. Also, almost every show has some sort of student or general rush policy, through which tickets are sold for $25 to $35 the day of the performance. Also, the TKTS booth, which is located in Duffy Square, features half-price tickets for many shows that can be purchased a few hours before the curtain rises.

Getting to New York City

The suburbs of Philadelphia are a great place to live as an avid or casual theatre fan, mostly because day trips to New York are an easy possibility. The train is one of the easiest ways to get to New York. The round trip ticket from the Trenton Transit  Center in New Jersey to Penn Station in Manhattan is $21.50. To get to Trenton, you can either drive or take the train from Philadelphia. The train fare from the suburbs into Philadelphia, and then from Philadelphia into Trenton is $9. Some people prefer to drive the entire way to New York City, which can take around two to two and a
half hours, depending on the weather and traffic conditions. However, if you’re planning to drive, be prepared – driving in the middle of Times Square can be messy.

Navigating the Theatre District

Like many cities, New York is set up on a grid system, making it relatively easy to navigate. Most of the Broadway theatres are between 41st and 54th street and Sixth and Eighth Avenue, making them all easy to locate. In addition to the many Broadway houses, the Theater District has several other attractions to offer tourists. Times Square is located right in the middle of the district, and Rockefeller Center is located on Fifth Avenue, near Radio City Music Hall. Shopping is also easy, with Fifth Avenue and its many stores only a short walk away. In many situations, the best bet for efficient transportation is walking. The walk from Penn Station to Times Square isn’t very long, and can often seem even shorter when the view of the city is being taken in.

Theatre Etiquette

Seeing a Broadway show is more than just going to the theatre; it’s an experience. There are several precautions that you should take when seeing a show. First, make sure your phone is turned off during the show. The signals from the phone can interfere with the sound equipment of the show, especially if wireless microphones are being used. Second, don’t have your camera out during the show. At a Broadway show, it’s not appropriate. Taking pictures and filming the show is not only distracting, but it’s also illegal. Most importantly, remain composed throughout the show. Also, it’s polite to clap at appropriate moments, such as after a song has finished or during a character’s entrance. However, don’t go overboard with the accolades. Repeated clapping and shouting is distracting and often looked down upon by the actors.

Andrew McKeough takes pride in collecting items, preserving Presidential memories...

excerpt from The Spoke published on December 19th, 2012:

Andrew McKeough takes pride in collecting items, preserving Presidential memories...

By Patrick Nicholson, Staff Reporter, The Spoke

McKeough with his collection at Valley Forge Middle School
Jenna Spoont | The Spoke

Autographed pictures. Presidential chocolates. An Air Force One jacket. A White House hand towel. For most people, obtaining any single one of these items would be an impressive feat. For sophomore Andrew McKeough, however, these items consist of a mere fraction of his entire collection.

Since middle school, McKeough has been collecting various items of presidential memorabilia, ranging from presidential letters to Oval Office M&M’s. Nowadays, McKeough’s collection is large enough to be displayed at libraries and schools around the district.

“Overall I’d say I have over 100 items in the collection, and about a quarter of the collection is traveling around the district,” McKeough said.

Jenna Spoont | The Spoke

McKeough’s collection has been featured at Valley Forge Middle School, the Conestoga library and the Tredyffrin and Easttown libraries. Obtaining such a large and valuable collection was not easy—McKeough’s family connections with the White House helped him build his collection. However, McKeough obtained his most prized items in his collection from the President himself.

President Obama “has written me two letters. One time he just wrote me because my cousin, [who works in the state department], asked if he would. The second time, he heard about the relief efforts I was doing for Bascome Fire Relief, and he wrote me a letter commending me on my efforts,” McKeough said.

McKeough said he values and cherishes his collection mostly because of the rarity of the items.

“It’s just having these things, saying you have an invitation for lunch with the President or one to the inauguration, I think that’s just [cool],” McKeough said. It’s “like a one-of-a-kind piece that no one else except you can get.”

Patrick Nicholson can be reached at pnicholson@stoganews.com.

Andrew McKeough and other Students take pride in collecting items, preserving memories

The Spoke – December 19^th, 2012:

 

Andrew McKeough and other Students take pride in collecting items, preserving memories

 

By Patrick Nicholson, Staff Reporter

Autographed pictures. Presidential chocolates. An Air Force One jacket. A White House hand towel. For most people, obtaining any single one of these items would be an impressive feat. For sophomore Andrew McKeough, however, these items consist of a mere fraction of his entire collection.

Since middle school, McKeough has been collecting various items of presidential memorabilia, ranging from presidential letters to Oval Office M&M’s. Nowadays, McKeough’s collection is large enough to be displayed at libraries and schools around the district.

“Overall I’d say I have over 100 items in the collection, and about a quarter of the collection is traveling around the district,” McKeough said.

McKeough’s collection has been featured at Valley Forge Middle School, the Conestoga library and the Tredyffrin and Easttown libraries. Obtaining such a large and valuable collection was not easy—McKeough’s family connections with the White House helped him build his collection. However, McKeough obtained his most prized items in his collection from the President himself.

President Obama “has written me two letters. One time he just wrote me because my cousin, [who works in the state department], asked if he would. The second time, he heard about the relief efforts I was doing for Bascome Fire Relief, and he wrote me a letter commending me on my efforts,” McKeough said.

Unlike McKeough’s collection, the items in junior Talia Borofsky’s collection were not hard to obtain, but were instead difficult to create. Borofsky collects sewing patterns, and for the past year she has been using them to create various articles of clothing. Borofsky’s favorite patterns are her vintage ones.

Andrew McKeough working on his collection at Valley Forge Middle School
Jenna Spoont | The Spoke

“I got these vintage ones online, these two 1960s ones,” Borofsky said. “Vintage patterns are beautiful when you look at the covers, and they’re just totally different from nowadays’ patterns.”

In total, Borofsky says she has nearly 30 sewing patterns and has made 10 articles of clothing from them. However, Borofsky feels that learning to create her own patterns would allow her to make an even wider variety of clothing.

“The ’20s are my favorite fashion period, and I dream about getting a flapper pattern from the ’20s, except [it’s] very expensive. That’s why I want to learn to make patterns, that way I could make one,” Borofsky said.

Like Borofsky’s sewing patterns, freshman Jack Edgarton’s pocket knives are more than just collectibles—they’re useful items. Edgarton, whose Boy Scout experiences inspired him to start his collection, still brings his knives with him on his monthly camping trips.

“I bring two or three on a campout,” Edgarton said. “I sharpen them a lot, because they always get dull from me using them, cutting up logs [and] shaving points for s’mores sticks.”

For Edgarton, pocket knives are appealing collectibles because of their many uses and unique designs.

“None of them have the same personality. Some are very tight and they’re hard to open, while others slide right open. Some of them are more useful, some are rugged, and others are just to show off,” Edgarton said.

Senior Juliana Suplee’s interest for theater mirrors Edgarton’s passion for knives. Since she was 8 years old, Suplee has been collecting Playbills from the various theater productions she has attended. She says her passion for theater led her to start collecting.

“I collect because I love theater, and I think collecting makes me love theater more,” Suplee said. “I guess Playbills are like what baseball cards are to guys. I don’t feel like I have to have every Playbill there is, but if I see the show, it’s a special memento I like to hold on to.”

Suplee prizes her 14 Broadway Playbills, many of which contain autographs from cast members. These Playbills serve as keepsakes that preserve the memories of her favorite theater experiences.

“The ‘Beauty and the Beast’ Playbill is probably one of my favorite ones, because it was my first Broadway Playbill, the first Broadway show I ever saw,” Suplee said. “I was 8, and I got Christy Carlson Romano’s autograph, and that was really cool.”

Unlike Suplee, McKeough said he values and cherishes his collection mostly because of the rarity of the items.

“It’s just having these things, saying you have an invitation for lunch with the President or one to the inauguration, I think that’s just [cool],” McKeough said. It’s “like a one-of-a-kind piece that no one else except you can get.”

Patrick Nicholson can be reached at pnicholson@stoganews.com.

Fit to a Tea; Wayne, Pennsylvania Actor in Beauty and the Beast; [FINAL Edition]

The Washington Post. Washington, D.C.: May 26, 2004. pg. C.14

Full Text (561 words)

Copyright The Washington Post Company May 26, 2004

There are lots of tough acting jobs out there. You could have to play Spider-Man and climb up buildings. Or you could have been an actor in Shakespeare's time, when boys had to play girl roles. But imagine for a minute being a teacup on a stage in front of hundreds of people. Oh, and then imagine talking to and singing and dancing with a clock, a candlestick and your mother, the teapot.

That's what 8-year-old Andrew McKeough of Wayne is doing in "Beauty and the Beast" through June 7 at the Academy of Music. McKeough will be traveling with the cast to Washington D.C. after the show's run in Philadelphia. Andrew has played the role of Chip, the teacup, in about half of the show's performances since it opened Feb. 4. (Another boy plays Chip in the rest of the shows. That's to make sure kids in plays don't work too much.)

So far, Andrew has performed in 11 cities. After Washington, he will be in five more cities before returning home in August. Tracy Grant spoke to Andrew about acting, being away from home and playing a teacup.

Were you a big "Beauty and the Beast" fan before you tried out for the part?

"I saw it was when I was really young, so when I got the audition, we went out and rented it. I sang "Gary, Indiana" [from "The Music Man"] for my audition and I got the part."

Do you like being an actor?

"I really, really do. I want to be an actor when I grow up. When "Beauty and the Beast" is finished, I'd like to act in whatever comes up: television, advertisements, movies, plays."

You've been traveling since February. Do you miss your family?

"My mom is with me the whole time. I miss my dad, but I like staying in hotels. That's nice. You learn different things when you go around to different places. On tour, I've learned how other people live. You think everybody lives like you do, but since I've been on tour I know that's not true. It's sort of sad when you leave [a city] and leave the people you've met."

What has been your favorite place?

"Washington D.C. will be, because it is the nation’s capital city, and I have a lot of family in the Washington D.C. and Arlington, V.A. area."

How do you go to school when you're in a play like this?

"I have a tutor. In a way it's better than regular school, because at regular school you have one teacher and 20 kids. Here, there are only two kids [Alex Rutherford of Connecticut, the other actor who plays Chip]. We have school four hours a day.

But I miss my friends and my teachers at Valley Forge a lot. The show finishes up in August and then I'll go home and see all my friends and go back to regular school. I'll be in third grade at Valley Forge Elementary."

You appear in half the shows. What do you do on days when you're not playing Chip?

"I sit backstage. I need to be ready just in case anything happens to the other Chip."

Are lots of your friends coming to see you in Washington?

"Forty people are coming to see me. They're all coming on one night. But I won't be nervous. I'm never nervous."

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction or distribution is prohibited without permission.

Section: STYLE

ISSN/ISBN: 01908286

Text Word Count 561

Andrew McKeough reunited with longtime friend and acting coach...

Ashford in the role of Lauren in the
NEW musical on Broadway Kinky Boots

On Saturday, April 6th, 2013, during one of Andrew’s regular trips to Broadway, Andy went to see the musical Kinky Boots. During his viewing of the musical he recognized one of the actresses. The actress was Annaleigh Ashford, who plays the lead role of Lauren in Kinky Boots.

Coincidentally Anna was Andrew’s former theater coach that helped him become who he is today. After the show he made contact with Anna; and is proud to say that he and his family will be visiting New York, in May of 2013, to see Kinky Boots again. Andy and his family will also have a private backstage tour by Anna. Anna Performed in Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey’s Feeling Electric in 2005. That same year, she also joined Rent’s Anthony Rapp at the New York Film Festival. Annaleigh’s career was beginning to take off. She then went on to understudy and perform the role of Glinda in the first ever U.S. National touring production of the hit Broadway show; Wicked.

In 2006, she originated the role of Margot (Elle Wood's ditzy and perky Delta Nu Sister) in Legally Blonde at the Palace Theater (where Judy Garland performed!). She also took on the understudy duties of Elle Woods in the show. Legally Blonde was Annaleigh's first Broadway show, but she wasn't stopping there!

Annaleigh left Legally Blonde in September 2007 to take over the role of Glinda on Broadway, where she respectively replaced Kendra Kassebaum. From October 9, 2007- May 11, 2008, Annaleigh took on the role of Glinda where she excelled even furthur in her Broadway career. On June 3rd, 2008, Annaleigh assumed the role of Glinda in the Chicago Company of Wicked, taking Kate Fahner's place. She stayed with the Chicago company until it's closing date, of January 2009.

Annaleigh is now performing in the role of Lauren, in the new hit Broadway musical; Kinky Boots!

Annaleigh has done readings and workshops for a few upcoming musicals, including Catch Me if You Can as Brenda Strong and The Addams Family as Wednesday Adams. She also has a cameo appearance in the Sex and the City movie and Anne Hathaway's Rachel Getting Married. Watch out! She's moving on up!

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