“Once Upon a Mattress,” a musical comedy adaptation of “The Princess and the Pea,” will come to Arlington High School this month.
The production from the school’s drama students will be held March 6, 7, 13 and 14 at 7 p.m. with a 1 p.m. matinee performance on March 14 as well. It is being presented at the Byrnes Performing Arts Center.
Tickets are $10 for adults and $8 for seniors and kids.
The play takes a different look on the classic Hans Christian Andersen tale.
“It’s a musical comedy that takes a spin on the classic fairy tale ‘The Princess and the Pea,’” said student Kirahy Meyers.
“It adds some elements and definitely takes some twists and turns along the way,” he said.
Student actor Jake Hurst said he expects the play to be an enjoyable event.
“I’m surprised they’re not selling mutton and mead in the audience because this is a really rowdy night of medieval fun,” he said.
The production adds characters and plot lines, and changes up a number of the characters.
“Everybody has heard of ‘The Princess and the Pea’ but not everybody has heard of this version of it,” said student Alec Villa.
A number of the portrayals are subverting typical story tropes around princes and princesses, such as Princess Winnifred, played by student Bella Fryberg.
“I’m not like a typical princess. I don’t have manners and I’m pretty awkward,” she said.
Or Prince Dauntless, whose mother does not want anyone to marry her son because no one is good enough.
“I would say I’m like the sheltered young pigeon who just wants to sprout his wings,” said Villa.
Meyers plays Sir Harry, one of the knights of the play.
“I’m regarded as one of the important knights in the kingdom. I’m kind of full of myself to be honest and I don’t always know what’s going on,” he said.
Many of the characters add a lot of humor to the play, such as Hurst’s character, King Sextimus the Silent.
“I’m mute so I have to express myself through pantomime. It’s like an hour-and-a-half long game of charades for me,” he said.
“It’s a challenge. You have to express very specific things with your arms,” he said.
Students said the jokes are enjoyable and have kept them engaged with the play.
“It’s really funny. I’m still laughing at jokes we’ve been rehearsing since November,” said Fryberg.
“Some of it is really crude, which probably appeals to a lot of younger people,” she said, although there are also more subtle jokes in the play as well.
There are many musical numbers throughout the play as well, which students said the enjoy.
“I’m just a really big fan of singing,” said Meyers. “The songs are really energetic and fun."
“From a music standpoint, everything is really catchy because they’re in the style of medieval jigs,” said Hurst.
While enjoyed by the students, the music has been one of the biggest challenges for the cast.
“The music took a lot of effort and work, but once we get it down it’s really great,” said Meyers.
“I also like the music. It’s been a challenge, definitely one of the hardest pieces that we’ve had to deal with,” said Williams.
Many of the characters get a good number for the play.
“I have a lot of fun songs and every character has some energetic, fun music,” said Fryberg.
More information about the upcoming production and other events is at the Byrnes Performing Arts Center website at byrnesperformingarts.org.
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