Brewster High to Debut Musical Thursday [VIDEO]

More than 100 Brewster High School (BHS) students have had a hand in this spring's musical, a show filled with comedy and dance.

How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying opens Thursday night. It's set to run a total of four times between then and Saturday.

"It's a spoof on the business world of the 1960s in New York City," Director Richard Grasso, a member of the 2008 BHS class, said. "So basically it involves a man named J. Pierrepont Finch, and he finds a book called How to Succeed in Business, and he climbs the ladder of business without really doing anything. So that's what the comedy is." 

With a 20-student orchestra and local production veterans—teacher Andrea Perdicho as producer, and Nicole Aravena of Seven Star School of Performing Arts in Southeast as head of choreography—behind the scenes, audience members are in for a treat, Grasso told Patch.

"It's super relatable to real life," said Kristen Huttunen, a senior who plays Hedy LaRue and loves the "no coffee" number (see the video at right for a sneak peek).

Huttunen and the rest of the cast and crew have been hard at work with intense rehearsals the last week or so. Last-minute activity has centered on everything from costumes to technology, plus perfecting cast members' moves.

"What's interesting is many of the shows we do here are not very dancey, they're more singing, more acting, and this is very, very dancey," Grasso said. "So it's a challenge for these kids to do something like this. We have 10 dance numbers in the show—tango, tap, ballet, jazz."

Tickets are $15 ($12 for seniors, staff and students). They are available at the door or online. The show is slated to run 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday, as well as 2 p.m. Saturday.

Thoughts from cast members:

Jimmy Barry, senior, on being involved in theater since the sixth grade: "In addition to the thrill of being on stage, it's the community. We have a great camaraderie with the cast and the crew, and it's really a great experience."

Liam Lonegan, senior, on the tone of the show: "It's very fun, very uplifting ... I think the time period is appealing to lots of people."

Jerry Merkel, senior, on a favorite scene: "The scene I particularly enjoy is the show-stopper, which is "brotherhood of man at the end," where all the men in the company get together and Finch basically tricks us all but saves our butts from getting fired at the end."

Sam Steere, senior, on the atmosphere backstage: "I just like working with all the wonderful people involved in the show. They're really awesome."

Sabrina Surace, junior, on themes: "Never stop reaching for your goal."