Seaside High School prepares
to open musical ‘Urinetown’
English teacher takes over as director for spring productions
Story by KATHERINE LACAZE
EO Media Group
Seaside High School’s spring
musical “Urinetown,” a satirical
comedy, explores socially rele-
vant themes and simultaneously
celebrates and pokes fun at mu-
sical theater itself.
The play opens at 7:30 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 26. and will be per-
formed through March 5 at the
high school’s auditorium.
“The whole point of the show
is it’s about sustainability and
choosing a way of thinking and
a way of life that is moderate,”
said LeeAnn Schmelzenbach,
the director and an English
teacher at the high school. The
play also examines the idea that
“all musicals are ridiculous and
awesome.”
Originally produced in 2001,
the play features many styles of
music, including jazz, contem-
porary and traditional Broadway
showcase. Greg Kotis wrote the
script and Mark Hollmann pro-
duced the music, with lyrics by
Hollmann and Kotis.
The plot centers on the futur-
istic, dystopian city Urinetown,
where people must pay to use
public toilets because of a 20-
year drought and a ban on private
toilets. The Urine Good Compa-
ny holds a monopoly over the
enterprise of public amenities,
including toilets. A young hero,
observing the inequity between
the rich and poor, leads a rebel-
lion, assisted by a character sym-
bolically named Hope.
Although parents may be
wary of the title, the show is fam-
ily-friendly; there is no swearing
or gambling, drugs or alcohol
references. Some of the themes
— such as the satirical critique
of greed, the legal system, pop-
ulism, bureaucracy, corporate
mismanagement and social ir-
responsibility — may go over
the heads of young audience
members, but they will enjoy the
comedy and music.
“I think there’s something in
it for everyone,” Schmelzenbach
said.
The cast includes 27 students,
and the show includes about 12
to 15 additional students for tech
and makeup. For the third year,
Vanessa Rush, who teaches mu-
sic and choir, is the musical di-
rector. Rich Small is overseeing
choreography. The show will be
accompanied by a live band.
Schmelzenbach is directing
the musical in place of Head
Secretary Lenore Morrisson,
who has directed both the spring
and fall plays for the past 11
years. Morrisson will still assist
with the production by oversee-
ing costumes, set, props, light-
ing and other technical aspects.
Schmelzenbach also is assisted
by senior Joseph Harkins, who
wanted to step off the stage and
help direct this semester.
Schmelzenbach, who joined
the staff this school year, did
musical theater in high school
and worked backstage for a
myriad of productions at the
John and Orah Brandt Fine Arts
and Convocation Center during
her college years at Northwest
Nazarene University in Nampa,
Idaho.
The goal is to split the high
school’s theatrical productions
between two people, so neither
gets burned out. Schmelzenbach
anticipates directing the spring
musicals for a while.
“I’m going to do it until I
can’t do it anymore,” she said,
adding she’s already started sift-
ing through ideas for next year,
which shows she has “bought
into this idea of directing.”
Although Schmelzenbach
has not directed before, this ex-
perience has shown she has the
ability and skill set to do so.
“Urinetown” was recommend-
ed to her by her best friend from
college, who said he had the
most fun acting while doing that
show. When she read it, she was
drawn to its darker humor and
satire. She also liked that this
was something new for the high
school.
“The deciding factor is that
it requires a large cast,” she said.
“That really made me excited
about it. In high school, theater
is supposed to be an experience
everyone can enjoy, and I think
that’s really true of this show.”
Instead of having one star,
eight people share the lead. The
cast — which features two ex-
change students, 17 seniors and
several new students — fell into
place smoothly following audi-
tions in mid-December, Schmel-
zenbach said.
the individual ideas and creativi-
ty students bring to their charac-
ters during rehearsal.
For more information about
the show, contact the high school
by calling 503-738-5586. The
high school is located at 1901 N.
Holladay Drive. Tickets are $8
for adults, $6 for senior citizens
and students, and $4 for high
school students with their As-
sociated Student Body card and
elementary students.
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Submitted Photo by Susan Baertlein
Seaside High School’s theater students are preparing to open their spring musical, “Urine-
town,” on Friday, Feb. 26.
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Photo by Katherine Lacaze
Cast members from Seaside High School’s upcoming production of “Urinetown” practice
a song during rehearsal after school Jan. 27. The students include (front row, from left)
Annie Stafford, Nathanael Ward, Lucy Swenson, Daniel Kuszmaul and Chloe Kincaid; and
(back from, from left) Chance Giguiere, Alison Zagata and Klara Bedrnova.
“Most of the kids are in choir
or band, and that really plays to
our advantage,” Morrisson said.
Using her skills as an English
teacher, Schmelzenbach alerted
her cast members to the meta-
phors, wordplay and other liter-
ary devices that make the play
so rich.
“It makes the show more in-
teresting to them,” Schmelzen-
bach said.
She said she is encouraged by
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February 25, 2016 | coastweekend.com | 21