Cappies Review: "Matilda the Musical" at Freedom High School

Here is a Cappies review of the performance of "Matilda the Musical" at Freedom High School on March 25:

RING RING RING!!! School's in session! The school bells go off. Little kids get ready to go to learn, believing that they are miracles as they were told by their parents, but are quickly proven wrong by the austere school environment provided by Crunchem Hall Elementary School. Matilda Woodworm is an exception, having been told all her life that she was not wanted by her parents. While her teacher, Miss Honey, believes that Matilda is one the most gifted students she has ever met, Miss Trunchbull, the headmaster, disagrees and exclaims that "CHILDREN ARE MAGGOTS!" Matilda decides to show Trunchbull that she can be a little bit naughty, helping the other students to fight back against her tyranny.

Matilda The Musical premiered on the ninth of December, 2010, and was based off of the book, Matilda, by author Roald Dahl in 1988. Many people know the story of Matilda either from the book, the musical, the film directed by Danny DeVito in 1996, and/or the recently released adaptation on Netflix. Throughout Matilda The Musical, themes of overbearing adults and the need to escape from a confined lifestyle filled with interpersonal trauma are consistently portrayed. The musical has won many different awards and has been played internationally, making it a very famous production.

Freedom High School's production of Matilda The Musical was invigorated by the high energy that the cast provided throughout the entire show. Each and every member of the cast portrayed their respective character with such resemblance that it was hard to decipher whether they were actors or just simply the characters straight out of the novel.

Mary Corej, who played Matilda Wormwood, was able to illustrate the rebellious child character archetype exceptionally well, diving deep into the paradigm in her performance of "Naughty." And that's not even mentioning the brilliance of her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Wormwood, played by Eric Wilfong and Ella Walters respectively, who interacted with the audience with their outstanding vocals and dancing, shown in songs like "All I Know (Telly)" and "Loud," where they were able to present their musical abilities to the audience.

As soon as the show began, the ensemble filled the auditorium with vigor through their performance of "Miracle." Throughout the musical, both the Little and Big Kids Ensemble knew how to keep the engagement and energy high in each song that they performed. As Bruce, played by Riley Burns, made his song of the same name come alive, his performance quickly became one to root for. Played by Lee Crumbliss, Michael Wormwood is another notable mention; through his facial expressions and comedic way of speaking, Crumbliss warranted laughs from the audience whenever he was on stage.

The overall technical aspect of the show was extraordinary. The way that spotlights were shown on each letter as they were sung throughout "School Song" added a level of creativity that really brought the whole show together. Along with this, the orchestra seldom missed a beat and performed perfectly.

Matilda The Musical was such a delightful and enjoyable show to watch. Freedom High School tackled this production with as much exuberance as possible, putting on a show that truly ticked all the right boxes.

by Robert Anne of Lightridge High School