The Bethany High School auditorium is alive with dance, music, and performance. Children from ages six to 17 are rehearsing for their spectacular musical production, Madagascar-A Musical Adventure. After a point the engrossing performance leaves you in awe as it is no less than that of a professional Broadway Musical. The director, renowned theatre personality Miriam Andrews knows the names of all the 130 performers, and calls out to each of them, encouraging them to give their best.
This is Bethany’s eighth musical that opens with four animals walking the streets of New York City, their robust voices fill the stage with an acapella version of the 80s pop song ‘Stayin’ Alive’. There is a star-studded performance of dancers twirling, leaping, cart-wheeling to the beat of ‘Firework’.
Marty, the zebra, yearns to be ‘Wild and Free’. But his friends, especially Alex the lion, are baffled that he wants to leave the comfort of the Central Park Zoo. However, in an attempt to rescue Marty, his three best of friends find themselves on a ship, captained by four conniving penguins, headed to Madagascar, where they are greeted by the comical, cowardly, and pompous King Julien, who has a hilarious accent.
Unique percussion instruments called ‘boomwhackers’ (toned pipes) transports the audience to Africa. The other highlights of the production are the songs Steak, in which Alex, the lion, dreams of steak; King Julien asking us to ‘Move it! Move it!’; the sassy love song between MOTO MOTO hippos (which means ‘hot, hot’ hippos in Swahili); and a romantic song between Alex and Gia, the jaguar.
Miriam says the most important aspect of the production is: “What do the children take back? Is it about being a star of the performance or is it about can I make everyone around me a star?”
The message for the children and adults in this production, says Miriam, is to adapt, evolve, and accept change. “We sit in our comfort zones and don’t want to be shaken out of it. In the play, the animals are transported to a new place, where they evolve, adapt and take risks. Bethany has always done plays with a message. The message here is that if I know who I am and I am confident in who I am, then I can be the change. The strength of identity is what helps in bringing about change. Bethany is that identity for many children.”
Akash Ryall, Director, Bethany Institutions, agrees and adds: “This musical too talks about friendships being strained due to peer pressure. We felt this will be a strong message for children and their friends.”
Miriam’s immense creativity is evident from the way she has conceptualised the production.
“It was challenging because of the various accents, the different styles of music, and getting the gait and characterisations of all the animals right.” She adds: “The the team at Bethany is dynamic, flexible, and adaptive. I also have an amazing team of teachers who helped with the production. Samera Kumar, the choreographer, is an ex-student at Bethany. I had directed her in a musical, and she was an excellent student too. She has come back to give back to the community. Arushi is assisting Samera in the choreography.”
Bringing her own interpretation, Miriam says: “The stage renditions of Madagascar are fairly subdued, especially the song Steak. I wanted to take Steak to a higher level and brought in a smooth jazz-ballet style.” Miriam says Madagascar has a universal appeal. “It is a community-based, family entertainment show. It is also in line with the Karnataka Tourism ‘Year of the Wild’ Campaign.”
Madagascar will be staged on December 7 and 8, at 7 pm, at St. John’s auditorium, Koramangala. Donor passes will be available at the Bethany Main School Office.
