“Matilda the Musical” reviewed by Julia W. Rath

Recommended ***  Community theatre is at its finest when the Highland Park Players take the stage for “Matilda The Musical!” at the Northbrook Theatre, in Northbrook, Illinois. This award-winning play based on Roald Dahl’s dark story about child abuse among the poorer classes in London is filled with great music and forces us in the audience to come to grips with conflicting emotions. It definitely does not sugarcoat childhood, and I found myself asking throughout: Do we really want our children to watch such a gruesome story unfold? But evil and meanness is very much a part of our world and theirs, and a tale such as this one can be cathartic for those young people whose home lives are far from ideal and where they are treated like trash by those in authority who should know much better. The show features heartfelt songs, beginning with the opening number “Miracle” when we learn that some children are loved and wanted while others are not. This song frames the tale and injects the idea of magic into a story that becomes more of a fairy tale. But the biggest magic of all is the quality of the acting and singing by the HPP child performers.

Rosemary Heckard, who played Matilda on the night I attended the show*, is marvelous in the starring role. She talks clearly and intelligently, sings well, and carries the show with enthusiasm. What a delight to watch her whenever she is on stage! Jill Iverson, as her teacher Miss Honey, has a mellifluous singing voice. She and Heather Benveniste, who plays the librarian Mrs. Phelps, are both warm and welcoming to Matilda. In contrast, Brent Walker (Miss Trunchbull) is super-mean as the school principal. The kids in the audience (and there were many of them) were astonished at everything that Mrs. Trunchbull would say and do; and from their reaction as a group, they could not believe just how mean she could be. Yet she was a somewhat comical character (who got lots of laughs) because of being dressed in a ridiculous drag costume. The kids in the audience also could not get over how terribly self-centered Matilda’s parents could be and how their messages were the absolute opposite of what is being taught in school. For example, just before the second act, Mr. Wormwood, Matilda’s father, played by Justin Vidovic, addresses the audience and tells us that we shouldn’t follow some of the bad examples that this musical portrays—like reading books. Mrs. Wormwood, convincing played by Hannah Rose, is—can I say it?—the “B-word.” And by the letter “B”, I’m not referring to Bruce, played by Brennan Monaghan, who sings nicely towards the end and whose fine acting is icing on the cake. (Bruce’s cake???)

Director and choreographer Jenilee Houghton does a great job coordinating all of the performers. The children’s interaction is superb, particularly in the classroom and group scenes. Very impressive is how well all the children remember to speak in a cockney accent; its use throughout the presentation adds a huge dose of realism. Music director Ken Preuss excellently conducts and arranges all of the songs—both the solos and the chorus numbers—thus creating a more-than-appropriate audio backdrop together with sound designer Rich Neumann. One of the best features of this production is the costume design by Patty Halajian and Matha Shuford, especially the children’s school uniforms and the over-the-top one-piece leotard worn by Mrs. Wormwood. The wig design by Royen Kent is fantastic and funny and perfectly suits the various characters. All the actors wore some kind of face covering over their nose and mouth. Most wore plastic masks/partial face shields as compared to cloth masks, but both were appropriate. In fact, this is the first live show I’ve attended since COVID where all the performers wore masks. I suspect that this is due to the fact that children under 12 are not yet vaccinated and they are currently the most vulnerable to getting the delta variant and spreading it to others.

This is a low-budget production as depicted by the very modest sets and moveable props throughout. There is, however, a lot of creativity in how the various building blocks (with books and letters printed on them) are constantly arranged and rearranged, thanks to set designer William Houghton. Lighting design and technical design by Kurt Ottinger is cleverly done, particular in the use of the scrim and Kurt Houghton’s projection design to showcase the escapologist (Dave Lemrise) and the acrobat (Kelly Gross) in silhouette.

Matilda’s feisty, if not fiendish, creativity through escapism and revenge becomes a way for her to navigate a bad family situation and mistreatment at school. Her willingness to speak her mind and act on her beliefs illustrates the resilience that children must acquire to discover a way out of bad circumstances rather than just resigning to them. We witness just how much verbal, physical, and psychological abuse kids can take before they can’t take it anymore. Perhaps one of the messages of this show is that both children and adults need to fight for their own integrity by emulating good role models while, at the same time, distancing themselves as much as possible from bad ones. Despite the number of people with warped mentalities who take pleasure in spewing insults and acting on their ignorant, if not evil, nature, the ending of this show is indeed hopeful. The 2-1/2-hour performance is both gripping and spot on!

“Matilda The Musical!” by the Highland Park Players is playing through October 3, 2021, at the Northbrook Theatre, 3323 Walters Avenue, in Northbrook, located towards the southeast end of Indian Ridge Park, a block west of the intersection of Walters Avenue and Landwehr Road. The show takes place over the course of two weekends.

Tickets:

Adults $30
Children 13 and under: $27

Performance Schedule:

September 24, 25, October 1, 2 at 7:30 p.m.
September 25, 26, October 2, 3 at 2:00 p.m.

For more information about the show and to purchase tickets, please go to:
https://www.highlandparkplayers.com/production-detail.php?pid=85.

For additional information about “Matilda”, including cast and staff bios, go to: https://www.hppmatilda.com/.

For general information about the Highland Park Players and to learn more about other shows they are producing, please visit: https://www.highlandparkplayers.com.

Due to new state mandates and CDC recommendations, all audience members regardless of vaccination status will be required to wear a mask at all times.

*Note that two different actors, Everleigh Murphy and Rosemary Heckard, play Matilda for four performances each.