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In the Wings

All things theatrical

Back from Broadway and a national tour

November
9

three.jpgKathryn Faughnan and Delaney Moro have gotten a spoonful of sugar from Mary Poppins and have stood alongside a proscenium-walking chimney sweep named Bert, on Broadway.

Marissa O’Donnell has been chased by onstage cops and matched wits with the evil Miss Hannigan (including Kathie Lee Gifford) in a national tour of “Annie” that spanned nearly two years.

But all three will snap to attention at the sound of Captain von Trapp’s whistle starting this weekend, in Yorktown Stage’s production of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s “The Sound of Music.”

For the next three weekends, Faughnan and O’Donnell will alternate as Brigitta, and Moro will alternate with her sister Regan Moro as Louisa.

What’s it like to return to community theater having tasted life on Broadway and in a national tour?

“It’s amazing,” says O’Donnell, a 13-year-old Westchester native. “It also takes a lot of stress off of you and you get to do what you really love.

“There’s definitely not as much pressure,” she says. “You come back to the stage and just have fun. On the road or on Broadway you have to work really hard. You have to work hard here, too, but you’re surrounded by people you love.”

And Brigitta is a different kind of character to play.

“Annie was kind of a sweet little girl who was charming,” O’Donnell says. “This one is a bit of a smart aleck and kind of a know-it-all. She tells Maria what’s right and what’s wrong. She tells her the truth, even when she doesn’t want to hear it. It’s a very different kind of role.”

While she says some of the other von Trapp children might look up to her, “they’re very confident kids.”

“They really can do it,” O’Donnell says. “I think, ‘Wow! They’re here, but I know they’re going to go somewhere else, just like I did.’ I was here and then I went on to great big things.”

When she was “here” before, O’Donnell played a royal child in the Yorktown Stage production of “The King and I” in 2002. She says “Annie” taught her a lot about focus.

“You have to be the character the whole time,” she says, “because when you’re onstage you have to forget if you were crying before the show or if you were having a birthday party before the show.

“It’s extremely hard. What Brigitta might be feeling when she’s living in that moment isn’t what Marissa’s feeling. She’s a whole different person.”

Asked what she misses about being on the road, she first mentions Lola, the dog who played Sandy in the show. And she says she misses playing Annie, even though she knows she needs to move on.

“When you do a part for two years, it becomes part of you,” she says.

When Kathryn Faughnan was first on Yorktown Stage, she was the back end of a horse in “Jack and the Beanstalk.”

Then came Broadway.

“The commute is a lot better, and I get to see my friends,” says the Westchester native. “I feel like I’m home.

“Even though being in ‘Mary Poppins’ for a year was amazing – and it felt a bit like home when I was there – it’s nice that a lot of my family can come to see me here. And the tickets are cheaper here,” she says with a laugh.

“I tell my friends I’ve been on Broadway, and they don’t treat me any differently,” she says. “I’m the same kid. I just got to my dreams quicker than usual.”

The 13-year-old still goes on auditions, but she wants to take a break to focus on eighth grade.

She says every time people got close to Gavin Lee, who plays Bert, “we would speak in a British accent.”

“He and Ashley [Brown] are my role models,” she says. “They’re older than me and more experienced. I’d like to follow their footsteps because they’re really successful.”

Delaney Moro, who played Jane Banks in “Mary Poppins” for nine months, says working at Yorktown Stage is “definitely a change, but I enjoy it because I enjoy performing.

“It was weird not having something to do after ‘Mary Poppins,’ so it’s nice to go back.”

Moro, who lives in Rockland County, is still working in the city, appearing in the American Girl shows.

The 12-year-old seventh-grader says she learned “you definitely need to be mature enough to be on Broadway. To know what to do and when to do it and what not to do.”

Her work in “Mary Poppins” came after years of training. She has taken dance lessons since age 3 and voice lessons since age 6.

Moro plays Louisa, alternating with her older sister, Regan.

“There are a few little kids in ‘The Sound of Music’ and they want to know what it’s like. They aspire to do other things. For older kids who’ve done Off-Broadway or Broadway or regional things, they look up to them.

“When you tell them what it’s like, they tell their parents, and they’ll get more excited and influence them to take more classes.”

Moro says she’s excited to be working with Faughnan and O’Donnell again.

“We’re really good friends,” she says. “I was in shows with both of them. Kathryn and I almost lived together for nine months. We had sleepovers and tutored together. And Marissa and I have done ‘Annie’ and American Girl together.”

“Sound of Music” director Greg Baccarini says the girls came to him with a performing background.

“Usually when I work with kids, I have to teach them the basics of being onstage, then blocking the show. These girls come with that already. You’re freer to do more things with them. They know how the process works.”

The director says their professionalism sets a great example.

“All those girls are spot-on. They’re always prepared and they’re always listening and they’re always giving 100 percent, even at a rehearsal with no scenery or props.

“When you’re on with someone who’s really good, it makes you want to work harder,” Baccarini says. “It makes you want to rise to meet their level. So I think it’s great for the kids for whom this is their first show.”

PHOTO: Stars of the Yorktown Stage production of “The Sound of Music,” from left, Delaney Moro, Marissa O’Donnell and Kathryn Faughnan are not newcomers to the stage. Moro and Faughnan performed in “Mary Poppins” on Broadway and O’Donnell played the title role in a national tour of “Annie.” (Photo by Mike Roy/The Journal News)

“The Sound of Music”
Where: Yorktown Stage, 1974 Commerce St., Yorktown
When: Nov. 10, 11, 17, 18, 23, 24 and 25 at 2 p.m.; Nov. 10, 17 and 24 at 7 p.m.
Tickets: $25; $23 for Yorktown residents; $21 for seniors (over 62) and for students 12 to 22; $19 for children under 12
Call: 914-962-0606
With: Jennie Berson, Bill Reilly, Jessica Best, Kyla Kerrigan, Lucas Kane, Joe Fanelli, Kathryn Faughnan, Marissa O’Donnell, Paige Simunovich, Kayla Vanderbilt, Delaney Moro, Regan Moro, Zach Landes, Kyle Brenn, Olivia Berkson, Lexie DeBlasio, Kathleen Hart, Barry Liebman, Deb Mengert, Monica Robinson, Chris Schulze, Maureen Thaler, Brianna Vaccaro, Lauren Wagner, Tom Berta, Nancy Jane Blake, Pauline Bruno, Kevin Cannon, Chelsea Derby, Karen Derby, Nan Gologny, Abbe Harkavy, and Kristina Koller. Directed by Greg Baccarini, with musical direction by Steve Saari and Jennifer Bauer-Conley as associate choreographer.
Also, in Irvington:

“The Sound of Music”
Where: Irvington Town Hall Theatre, 85 Main St., Irvington
When: Nov. 9 and 10 at 8 p.m., Nov. 10 and 11 at 2 p.m.
Tickets: $20 and $28
Call: 914-591-6602 for tickets
With: Bonnie Rofé, Arnie Mazer, Grace Clary, T.J. Larke, Molly Gallagher, Isabel Garcia, Nicholas Barasch, Meghan Gallagher, Ruby Reilly, Caroline Harty, Paige Harty, Madelyn Gallagher, Kathy Wolf, Barbara Salant, Joe Zeolla, James Landrum, Tina Fairweather, Jessica Huff, Lea Richardson, Lee Richardson, Heather Steinberg, Janet Accurso, Eddie Bernabei, Miriam Bernabei, Charles R. Colwell, Penny Cassar, Jake Cunningham, Ed Decker, Alicia Fine, Brooke Harty, Elaine Healy, Leslie Lafayette, Rich Le Buhn, Judah Shapiro, Marti Stewart and Craig Vogel. Directed by John McDonald, with musical direction by Kinny Landrum and choreography by Sandy Evangelista.

This entry was posted on Friday, November 9th, 2007 at 10:17 am by Peter D. Kramer.
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If it involves theater in any way -- from grade-schoolers learning Shakespeare to high school musicals to Broadway veterans getting into character -- this is the place to talk about it. We'll have audition notices, casting notices, mini-reviews and plenty of ideas to fill a theater junkie's to-do list.
About the Author
    Peter D. KramerPeter D. Kramer has loved theater his whole life. A Rockland County native and 19-year employee of The Journal News, Pete relishes his current role, alerting theater lovers to the possibilities and talking to artists young and old about their craft. A former actor, director, technical director, ticket-taker and bon vivant, Pete has put a theater life behind him, living vicariously through those he interviews.

    E-mail Peter

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