South Huntington's Walt Whitman HS Production Of 'Chicago' Dazzles Audiences

SOUTH HUNTINGTON, NY — Audiences were dazzled by Walt Whitman High School’s production of the musical, "Chicago," according to the South Huntington School District.

Every April, the school’s Center Stage Productions brings the South Huntington community a classic musical.

"Chicago"tells the story of two women, Velma Kelly and Roxie Hart, locked up in the city’s Cook County jail in the 1920s jazz age, who desperately want fame, even if it takes being accused of murder to get it. Add in slick lawyer Billy Flynn, who manipulates their stories to feed a scandal-hungry public by whipping up the media into writing sensationalized headlines across the city.

The musical was performed to enthusiastic audiences from April 4 to April 6.

Walt Whitman’s director/choreographer, Dr. Susan Turner Radin, has always wanted to stage "Chicago" at Whitman. She’s been teaching dance at the high school for 23 years. Walt Whitman is one of only a few high schools on Long Island that still offers dance classes as part of its Arts curriculum.

Radin says choosing a show every year is like putting together a puzzle.

"You have a group and you kind of have an idea of what they're capable of," Radin said. "And I try to choose a show that I know I will be able to cast. I have to take into account how many girls I have. How many boys do I have? Who can dance, who can sing and dance, who can sing, act, and dance? And then you listen to the auditions and you take all the puzzle pieces and you start moving them around the board."

She knew she had the right mix of talent this year to stage the acclaimed musical that first premiered on Broadway back in 1975.

Bob Fosse’s choreography is iconic and, as Radin wrote in the program, "producing any version of Chicago without it, is unthinkable."

With the help of Dance Captain and high school senior Morgan O’Donoghue, the cast had to learn Fosse’s original choreography to the best of their ability from old footage. Radin admitted she also added a little "Whitman flare" to the choreography.

"I knew I had great dancers," she said. "A lot of the kids that were on stage for this production I’ve had in my dance classes for three and four years."

One of the lead actors who has not been in Radin’s dance classes for years and admitted to being a little nervous about learning the iconic choreography was Gracie DeMarinis in the challenging role of Velma Kelly.

"I spent every free period I had in the dance room practicing all the dances, and I worked really hard," DeMarinis said. "I definitely improved my dancing, but there were times when I kind of thought I wasn't going to be able to get it. But then the more the rehearsal process went on, the more I felt 'I'm going to be able to do it and it's going to look great.'"

Great choreography needs great music, and the Pit Orchestra provided it, the school district wrote. The jazzy, 1920s-era, vaudevillian score features well known songs like "All That Jazz," "Cell Block Tango," and "Razzle Dazzle."

Whitman’s 26-piece pit ensemble, made up of talented students and two teachers, was conducted by Music and Art Department Chairman, Matt Hoffman. They brought the audience back to the Roaring 20s right from the opening note of the overture.

No production is complete without all the behind-the-scenes talent — the set design and construction, props, lighting design, and sound design, and backstage crew support.

"Chicago's" production staff and crew, including Whitman’s Lamplighters and their advisor, Vito Monti, made sure the production looked and sounded great, and ran smoothly.

The annual musical production is also part of Walt Whitman’s Spring Fling. For more than 30 years, the high school has invited senior citizens from the South Huntington community to come to the high school for a fun afternoon of lunch, dancing, and raffles. They also get a free ticket to see the musical. On April 5, they had a great time socializing with friends before heading to Walt Whitman’s Performing Arts Center to see the Saturday matinee performance of "Chicago."