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By Rama K. Ramaswamy
Wellesley Middle School is set to present Disney's "High School Musical, Jr." on March 21 at 4:30 p.m., March 22 at 7 p.m., and March 23 at 2 and 7 p.m. The show features two sets of casts, A and B, which gives student-actors more opportunities to act in featured roles.
"My favorite part about being in the show is that I get to meet so many new people and show up and be part of a group that everybody has something in common almost every day," said student-actor Jack Allieri, who plays Chad Danforth in cast A.
"My favorite part of being in the show is bringing the message of 'High School Musical' to the stage," said student-actor Sophia Bogdanovitch, who plays Gabriella in cast A. "For me, the message is that the groups we belong to shouldn’t define us, but rather we should define ourselves."
"I have loved doing theater ever since I was in 'Elf' in seventh grade at the middle school, and 'HSM' is no exception!" said student-actor Julia Pekowitz. "My favorite thing about being in the show is that I have met so many amazing people throughout this experience. Some of my best friends today I have just recently met through the show. Furthermore, it is an amazing way to meet with students in different grades. 'High School Musical' also hits close to home for so many of us, since some people are put in a stereotypical mold of being one type of person, but through the show they are able to express who they really are."
"'High School Musical, Jr.' is a show about kids realizing that they have passions different from what is expected of them and finding ways to be their most authentic selves," said WMS Performing Arts faculty member and director of "High School Musical, Jr." Katherine Speed. "When the star of the basketball team has a chance encounter where he meets a new student who's a brainiac genius, they both learn that they love to sing, and have to decide whether to 'stick to the status quo' of the social climate of their school or break free of convention to be who they are."
To purchase tickets for "High School Musical, Jr.," visit www.tiny.cc/HSMWMS.
