The Baymen theater has spent four months working and rehearsing, and on March 20 this year’s musical, “Sister Act” had its opening night.
“Sister Act” is a musical comedy which is based off of the movie of the same name and follows singer Deloris Van Carter. After witnessing her boyfriend, Curtis, kill someone, Deloris enters witness protection as a nun.
When asked why she chose to do “Sister Act”, one of the directors, Mrs. Perez said, “As always, it fit the talent that we had. So, it felt like a really fun show. All the directors liked the music and the storyline and we knew it was going to be funny and that our kids would do really well with it.”
Auditions for the show were in December and the cast and crew started working hard right away. During tech week, the week leading up to the performance, everyone was at rehearsals from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. This has all culminated in three performances, on March 20, 21 and 22.
The stage manager, Luke David, who is a senior, reflected on his time being apart of Baymen Theater. “My older sister was already apart of the theatre club and I needed something to do so I was told to join theatre as a stage member, I came to enjoy being apart of stage crew and ended up staying. What I enjoy about stage crew is that even though I’m mostly back stage I still play a major role in the production because scenes wouldn’t move. I’m pretty happy that this is my last play because I got to see so many people grow and express themselves. But I am quite sad to be leaving the cast and crew but still can’t wait to see and hear on how they continue to grow.”
The lead role in the show, Deloris Van Carter, was played by senior, Sumeja Bytyqi. When asked about her favorite part of theater, Bytyqi said, “Connecting with people, like getting to know them more, making connections. I’m hanging out with people that I don’t really see during the day. And then I hang out with them and connect with them in the theater. It’s good. And then just being on stage is good too.” When later asked about how she feels with this having been her final show Bytyqi said, “I feel like I’m excited to move on with my life, but I’m glad we got to end off my final show with a good note.”
Another senior Eoin Datsyuk played the gangster Curtis in the show. Datsyuk said, “I loved the show. It was fun and there were a lot of great moments in the show, specifically Lady in the Long Black Dress, that will definitely be good memories for everyone that was involved. I had a lot of fun with my character. I usually don’t get to play a villainous character, and I had a lot of fun portraying him”
When asked what advice he would give people who want to try theater in the future, Datsyuk said, “Have fun. Everyone in the cast is wonderful, and I’m sure you will enjoy your time. Take the opportunity to make new friends, try new things, and do whatever makes you happy.”
A fun fact about the show is it featured a cameo by Superintendent Clemensen on Friday and Sunday’s performances as the pope and Chef Curtis as the Pope on Saturday’s performance.
After the final performance everyone in the cast felt very good about the show. Mrs. Perez called it a “10/10.” The crowd absolutely loved it and gave a big round of applause.
