Family Day at Drury Lane

On Sunday, June 9th, Drury Lane Theatre in Oakbrook had a “Family Day” to celebrate their marvelous production of  “Matilda: The Musical” ( see my review at Theater Reviews).  During these events, the younger set gets to learnmore about a production and in this case, I asked 11 year old Lily Kienzle to take her mother and let me know what she felt. It is often nice to get a younger mind to help decide if a show is right for your child ( or grandchild).

Here are her thoughts:

I saw “Matilda” on Broadway with my parents when I was 8, three years ago. I just had my birthday last week and I turned 11. I was excited to see this Drury Lane Matilda, but I wasn’t sure this cast could possibly compare – but it was PHENOMINAL!

Sean Fortunato played “The TRUNCHBULL” and he did an incredible job. He was funny and a big ham – he wasn’t afraid to really get into the role. I especially loved when he called the kids “revolting” and “maggots!” He interacted with the audience and I felt we were closer – we got more involved than in the Broadway .

 He was SO FUNNY I could not stop laughing.

One of my favorite parts of the play was actually not part of the play – it was when Mr. Wormwood, played by Jackson Evans, talked to the audience after intermission and before the play started again. He also was amazing. Really amazing.

Miss Honey, played by Even K. Logan, had the voice of an opera singer. Mrs. Wormwood, played by Stephanie Gibson, was hilarious.

And Matilda, played by Audrey Edwards, I can’t say enough about her…she had the right pitch, her voice…well, I want to hear her all day. And her acting…she was so good. I was lucky I got to meet Audrey before the play in the lobby. My picture with BOTH Matildas is below.

The ensemble, all of the kids, were terrific.

My favorite songs were Loud, When I Grow UP, Revolting Children, Naughty and Miracle. Their versions were incredible and I felt like I wanted to jump up on stage and sing with them.

I recommend this play for kids 8 years old and older. The only problem is that it was a little too long…too long for younger kids.