UCC returns to stage with Matilda musical May 1-4
After a five-year hiatus, Ursuline College Chatham students and staff are ready to raise the curtain for the school’s first musical production since the pre-pandemic days.
The all-student cast and crew will perform the musical Matilda at the UCC Theatre from May 1 to 4. Shows will be nightly from Wednesday to Saturday at 7 p.m.
About 75 students and 35-40 staff will be involved in the on-stage production and the many behind-the-scenes tasks.
Olivia Gregory will play the lead role of Matilda Wormwood, while Audrey O’Hara plays Miss Honey.
Two UCC students from Ridgetown – Jillian Pilbeam and Lily Burke – are part of the ensemble.
There are 25 students in the cast, 12 in the orchestra, and another 30-35 behind the scenes in make-up, sound, lighting, stage crew, costumes, and ushers.
Construction and visual arts students have assisted with set building and painting.
“Our cast and musicians have been hard at work perfecting their performances,” said Jordan Matteis, head of the UCC Guidance Department and show producer. “The crew is working to ensure a top-notch presentation.”
“It’s going to be a great show,” he said.
Matilda is based on the 1988 children’s novel of the same name. Matilda is a precocious child with an uncaring mother and father who attends a school run by the tyrannical headmistress, Miss Trunchbull.
“It’s a popular book to read, it was a Netflix special, it’s a musical our creative team had an interest in from the moment it was conceived,” said Matteis of the decision to put on Matilda.
“It’s a show that’s appealing to all ages and a story people have known for a long time, stated Matteis. “It’s very popular right now. When the rights became available, a lot of school groups tried to get them,.”
He said Matilda’s popularity is the main reason why ticket sales have been so overwhelming.
Another reason is that it is the school’s first production since In The Heights in 2019.
Matteis said it has been “like starting from scratch” to put UCC’s 24th production back on stage.
“There has been a lot of changeover in terms of staff involved, and our admin team is different, so everybody is starting over,” he said.
And most important, putting on a musical play is an entirely new experience for the students, all of whom were in elementary school in 2019.
“They may remember seeing the shows when they were kids, but this is a new experience and the commitment it takes to put on,” Matteis said.
Tickets are only available online at www.ucctheatre.sccdsb.net/ticket-info
A limited number of tickets are available for all four shows, as the Friday and Saturday performances are almost sold out.
Michael Bennett, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Ridgetown Independent News
