Students and parents at the West Tisbury School had a magical experience last Saturday when Lucy Dahl, author Roald Dahl’s daughter, came to see the school’s production of “Matilda the Musical Jr.” The musical is based on Roald Dahl’s 1988 book, “Matilda,” the story of an exceptional little girl who stands up for herself with extraordinary courage.
The cast was made up of 40 students in grades 4 to 8, with fifth grader Izzy Nelligan playing Matilda. Director Barbara Binder said she’s always wanted to try out that particular production:
“I’ve always wanted to do it because I used to be an assistant in the second grade classroom, and I always read ‘Matilda’ at snack, every year for six years. I’ve always loved the story of this little girl being triumphant … it’s a very special story.”
All three weekend performances were well-attended, Binder said, and the audience and students especially appreciated the visit by Dahl. She spoke to the audience before Saturday’s show, talking about her father. He had a motto, Dahl said: “You’ve got to be naughty, you’ve got to be mischievous, you’ll be deeply boring if you’re not. But don’t get caught.”
Binder said there were a lot of folks busy behind the scenes of this year’s production, including assistant director Rachel Cook, musical director Mary Alice McCann, choreographer Jen Maxner, set designer Lisa Magnarelli, set painter Michele Mayhew, costumers Abby Bailey and Karen Dutton, lighting and sound designer Anthony Esposito, tech assistant Allie Horowitz, and stage manager Annie Ollen.
Students in the performances included Adagio Esposito as Mr. Wormwood and River Maxner as Mrs. Wormwood. Karma Powers portrayed Miss Honey, Seth Hyde played Agatha Trunchbull, and Reed Cabot starred as Miss Phelps.
