Seattle Prep’s winter musical is approaching fast, and it’s a show no one should miss. Director and Drama Teacher, Mr. Adam Othman and his team bring to you the timeless tale of Pippin, named after a young prince who is destined to do great things but begins to question the expectations set for him, the pressures placed on him, and who he is really meant to be. The six shows, on every Friday, Saturday and Sunday from February 20th to March 1st, are filled with thrilling moments both comical and emotional.

For those who are not familiar with the show, it first opened on Broadway in 1972 and was very popular because it changed how musicals were done in terms of the story. Pippin is a play within a play, so there’s a lot of parallels between the actors, known as players, who are putting on the show and their characters that play certain roles in Pippin’s life. Julia Ribas ’18 says that, “Being a player in general is kind of fun because you’ve got that mysterious feel around you. It’s the sinister, ‘I know something you don’t kind of thing.”

Nick McCarthy ’15 plays the Leading Player, who manipulates Pippin’s life and the things around him throughout the production. “I am almost like the game show host of this show. It’s my job to guide Pippin through his life and make sure he gets to the (level of) extraordinary greatness that he needs to be at.”

The players serve as a metaphor for the pressures that push him far from who he wants to be, and more towards a pre-determined destiny. The concept is quite intriguing, and by the final scene, the audience witnesses a powerful moment as Pippin makes the ultimate decision about what he will do with his life. Matt Seib ’17 says of his role as Pippin, “I see a lot of similarities between him and I. He’s adventurous and young, but still trying to figure out what to do with his life.”

Throughout his search for fulfillment, Pippin experiences many different parts of life, including love. Lily Dowling ’17 plays Catherine, the main love interest in the show whom she has found a lot in common with. “I think of myself as a lot like Catherine because she’s kind of awkward and mostly comedic…but I feel like she’s the most realistic character in the show, whereas most characters are not very ordinary or relatable. It’s been difficult to find a way to become her character believably without being too much like myself!”

Along his journey, there are also many showcases of different styles of music and dance, thrillingly integrated by Heather Dawson. Dawson says “The best part about choreographing Pippin is I have not worked on a show of this style before, so it’s interesting to find new movement to go with it. When I dance, I don’t just hear music, I also feel music and don’t necessarily count. I let it speak to me…versus trying to figure out where I have to find movement to fit the music. There are a number of pieces in Pippin where this has happened, and it’s always a joy when it does.”

Other people you may not see working onstage include Nate Grams ’18, who is an assistant stage manager. Grams explains his back-of-the-house role “(Theater has) been my passion for a long time and I wanted to try something new. Pippin is a very complicated show. It’s very conceptual…and going to be hard when we come to tech week.”

The head stage manager, Campbell Maghie ’16, adds, “In this show, we have things flying out, and I’ve never worked with that before, so that’s another shape and color in my system of labeling things. I have notes written about the show and I call all the cues that change the lights and turn on the microphones and play all the sounds. And this show is very light-and-sound-intesnsive.”

As director of the play, Mr. Othman’s creative and stylistic choices will be depicted by the set, costumes, and lighting. “I’ve set it very much back in the medieval times of Charlemagne and Pippin, but as the play goes on, as Pippin matures from a boy into a young man, I’m moving it from the medieval times so it slowly gets more contemporary. When you get to the final scene of the play, it’s going to have a very modern look and feel because I want the audience to be able to connect with Pippin and not just look at him as a historical figure.”

Othman remembers being mesmerized the first time he saw the show and feeling a deep connection to it. He would later go on to play the role as a young actor. “I think it’s a perfect show for a Jesuit school to do because as teachers at Prep, we want you to become men and women for others, be independent thinkers, and make a positive impact on the world and Pippin is faced with those same challenges.”

Seib describes Othman as a director who gives his actors a frame of the character and lets them explore the character in themselves, so it can be played how each person wishes it to be played and not just how it should be portrayed. Says Dowling, “He’s like a big father to everybody in the drama program.”

Shortly after the reveal of Seattle Prep’s musical choice, Blanchet announced they would also be performing Pippin. However, participants in our drama program are looking at this in a positive way. Julia Ribas reveals that she is excited to see how both schools interpret the show differently. Each drama program plans on viewing the other’s production in order to support and learn one another.

Many members of the cast have enjoyed spending the rehearsal process with one another. Ribas exclaims, “Gosh, these people are so great! They’re enthusiastic and welcoming and willing to help with anything. I love them.” Jokes Evan Sorentinos ’16, “Uh…they all like to sing…a lot…even when thepy shouldn’t be singing…great group of people. Love the kids. Great energy out there. God bless. For that reason, the show will be magical.”

Still not convinced? Seib states, “I think people should come because it is a fun, energetic show that has both it’s deep moments that you connect with and it’s still really funny, and I think you could take away either that deeper part of the show and it’s meaning, or the sillier parts.”

McCarthy adds, “It’s one of those shows that really changed musicals. It broke the fourth wall. It wasn’t a conventional story whatsoever, and that really makes it exciting…because there’s many adaptions and different takes you can have on it.”

Says Dowling, “I think people should come because it’s not a show that our generation knows very well and it’s really fun and it has to do with growing up, which everybody’s doing right now. I hope that they will have fun watching it and that they’ll learn their own lesson…and that some part of it they will connect to.”