Disney’s “High School Musical” live onstage
Where: Wolf Trap Filene Center
When: 8 p.m. Sept. 2 to 4, 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Sept. 5 and 6
Info: $55 to $80 in-house, $25 lawn; 877-965-3872; wolftrap.org
Wolf Trap tops off its summer season with the Theater of the Stars production of Disney’s “High School Musical.” The perfect excuse for jocks and nerds alike to throw a back-to-school party is filled with tuneful numbers they know by heart. As the conflict between cliques reaches a satisfying conclusion, the audience inevitably erupts in deafening cheers of joy.
“I feel like one of the Beatles every time I walk onstage,” says Michael Mahany, who plays Troy Bolton, captain of the basketball team. The California native originated the role of Jack Scott in the show’s world premiere and first national tour. Now cast as the hero, he basks in the elevated decibels of the screams accompanying his entrance.
His reaction goes with the territory. The award-winning film addressing the wonders and woes of teenagers struggling with peer pressure has generated more installments featuring the same characters idolized by their fans.
“It’s completely different and a whole new take to be playing the athletic hero,” Mahany says. “In high school, I was kind of a nerd who fit into the theater crowd best. In the show, Troy figures out that he can succeed in both worlds. It’s fun to show kids that they don’t have to limit themselves to one talent and one set of friends.”
Mahany’s resume amazes casting directors. Along with a black belt in martial arts, he is proficient in stage combat, and multiple voices and dialects he has been perfecting since childhood. With a bachelor’s degree in fine arts from the Boston Conservatory, he has performed in shows as diverse as “Macbeth,” “Into the Woods” and the original off-Broadway production of “Spring Awakening.” Following this tour, he is scheduled for a spot in the next “Sex and the City.”
Even though nearly a decade has elapsed since his own high school experience, Mahany and the other cast members portraying teenagers appear years younger to the audience than Kristi Ambrosetti, who plays their drama teacher, Ms. Darbus. In truth, all are close the same age.
“The trick is that I’m taller, about five feet, nine inches without heels,” Ambrosetti says. “The other actors are shorter and filled with youthful energy that comes across well. Ms. Darbus has a Jekyll and Hyde personality that I create by channeling some of my wonderful and kooky drama teachers. She thinks that her arts program is the most important in the school, while Coach Bolton thinks his basketball team should come first.”
Ambrosetti grew up in Annapolis, where she was so active in local dinner and community theaters, she missed her own high school graduation. After perfecting her tap dancing skills and receiving a bachelor’s degree in musical theater from Catholic University of America in Washington, she headed to New Hampshire. She was performing with the New London Barns Players when a choreographer spotted her, gave her a quick audition on the steps of the barn and signed her up for the Theater of the Stars’ “42nd Street” tour. Before it arrived at Wolf Trap earlier this summer, she had traveled with the show to Moscow, Japan and China.
“It’s amazing how opportunities grow from a little tiny window like that,” she says. “After it played, I was at Rehoboth Beach with my mom when they called to say they wanted me for ‘HSM.’ I’d never seen it, so I watched the movie and thought it was cute and definitely for me. I don’t look like Alyson Reed, whom everyone knows from the movie, and I give a quirkier, different tone to the role. They’ve already written ‘HSM’ sequels 4, 5 and 6, so I anticipate more opportunities playing Ms. Darbus.
“Just as ‘Rent’ was the musical of my generation, ‘HSM’ is the musical of today’s teenagers. It has a beautiful message that means something to them, and there’s also one for the adults that the kids might not understand.”
