By: Megan Roche

While the Roxbury High School musical may have come and gone, another musical will be coming to grace the Eisenhower Middle School stage. Mary Poppins Junior will be staged from April 11-13.

The classic tale brings to life the story of an unhappy family who learns that family and each other are most important when Mary Poppins arrives. The production promises the songs that are memorable like SuperCaliFragilistic, Spoonful of Sugar, and Step in Time. Director Jessica Blewitt had an easy time selecting the show.

“For the last three years we have performed Disney Jr. Musicals (Aladdin, Lion King) so we picked Mary Poppins to continue along with this trend.  These Disney musicals have a large fan base, so we have been very successful with these shows and the families who have come to our performance have really enjoyed them.” Blewitt said.

For Blewitt and her cast, rehearsal days have been long, but filled with magic all around. The cast is hard at work preparing for the early April shows.

“This is my 1st year directing after being the choreographer for the past 10 years.  Mary Poppins is magical so for this production we have worked on creating theatrical effects.   Also, there is a new sound and lighting system that was just installed so that will also create a magical experience for our audience.” Blewitt said.

For mom and Mary Poppins publicity chair, Kristen Brinkman, the kids in the show have been working extremely hard. She noted that importance and lessons the involvement in a musical teaches the kids.

“We do it all for our kids because the experience of participating in a production does more than just feed their egos, it teaches teamwork, time management, how to take direction, how to work under pressure and be held accountable.  It increases creativity, social skills and confidence and so much more.” Brinkman said.

Mary Poppins Junior stars Emma Milsom as Mary Poppins, Evan Paddock as Burt, Angela Kovacs as Winifred Banks, Alex Brinkman as George Banks, Diya Narayan as Jane Banks, Andrew Darling as Michael Banks, Ava Milsom as Bird Woman, Isabella Negron as Miss Andrew, Mikayla Provenzano as Mrs. Brill, Zack O’Connor as Robertson Ay, Angelina Riveros as Mrs. Corry, Christian Sokolowski as Neleus, Ethan Olmstead as John Northbrook, Caleb McInnes as Von Hussler, Carter Olmstead as Chairman, McKenna Stierch as Katie Nanna, Sabrina Simpson as Miss Smythe, and Emma Palombit as Policeman.

Members of the ensemble include Maya Atanasio, Nancy Bogardus, Rebecca Borda, Ava Cacchiola, Kaitlyn Castellano, Santiago Codoceo, Krystal Cole, Carly Curtiss, Skye Desjardins, Karmen Giannikopoulos, Olivia Hachey, Ariyana Hoover, Ava Lurachy, Katie Oxfort, Emma Palombit, Corynne Pereira, Shawn Rasizer, Angelina Rivera, Leah Schlam, Breanna Sharpe, Riley Shivas, Claire Silfies, Agelina Stigliano, and Annika Szardenings. The dancers are Julia Gonzalez, Jamie Kudler, Suraiya Perrett, Annabelle Plociniak, Kimberly Tso, and Sofia Weintraub.

Tickets for the show are available by visiting www.roxbury.org.