Tara Brooke-Watkins photo
“Hello, Dolly!” ran Oct. 17, 19, and 24-26.
In the small town of Yonkers, New York, vivacious and outspoken matchmaker Dolly Levi (senior Liz Curry) attempts to find herself a new husband in miserable, moody shop owner Horace Vandergelder (senior Evan Detwiler).
Dolly continues to play Cupid, “meddling” and setting up various other couples.
She throws together smart, silly, widowed Irene Molloy (senior Emily Holecy)—originally set up with Vandergelder—with the bright, adventurous shop worker Cornelius Hackl (senior Matthew Gilbert).
Endearingly senseless Barnaby Tucker (David Burley) finds love with Molloy’s stereotypical yet surprisingly sweet assistant Minnie Fay (sophomore Christina Cerezo).
The sidesplitting musical features some of the most talented singers and actors to grace the ENC stage. Between the facial expressions, freeze-frame scenes, and the final courtroom scene, “Hello, Dolly!” had the audience in stitches the entire time.
The cast put on an incredible show every night, and enjoyed every moment, even the tough ones.
Holecy, who completely stole the show with her hilarious and talented depiction of Irene Molloy, remembers one such night.
“My microphone needed its battery changed mid-scene and we only got the mic shoved back onto my dress literally one second before I had to walk back on. It was a close call and I think a few members of the crew nearly had a heart attack.”
Cerezo also had an amazing experience with the show, saying that working on the musical “was such a blessing. Working under the leadership of Tara Brooke-Watkins and the rest of the cast has been a learning experience . . . It was upbeat, comical, and overall, a lot of fun!”
Director Tara Brooke-Watkins couldn’t be more pleased with the show’s success and immensely enjoyed directing “Hello, Dolly!”
“I enjoyed directing this show because my concept for it was to exaggerate the acting style and staging so that audiences would feel thoroughly transported to an almost non-existent time and place,” Brooke-Watkins said. “I approached the set and costume designers about creating impressionistic illustrations in place of large set pieces and amplified bustles and shoulders for costumes.”
After the two-hour show, audiences were walking out with stomachs hurting from laughter and the satisfaction of knowing that after all the blunders and mishaps, the entire ensemble of characters ends up happy and filled with a new sense of love and adventure.