By Maxine Musto || Contributing Writer
The Spring 2019 Broadway Revue production of Once Upon A Time was the focus of campus last weekend. Walking into the Green Room theater thirty minutes before the start of a performance in order to ensure a ticket and a good seat, one was greeted by large groups of students chatting amongst themselves, parents clamoring for a front row seat, and the overall din of excitement and anticipation.
Written by F&M’s very own Maeve O’Brien, Once Upon A Time was an entertaining hybrid of classic Broadway showtunes and Disney. Incorporating many different plots into one show, O’Brien managed to spectacularly combine all of these aspects to tell the story of characters who are forced out of their individual stories and try to find their way back home.
A few particularly noteworthy moments were the seniors’ performance and the variety of soloists. Each year, Broadway Revue productions include a song for the seniors as a send-off as they near graduation. This year, they sang For Good from the musical Wicked, and it was an emotional moment for both the seniors on stage and in the audience. It was the perfect song choice for this moment, and it truly conveyed the impact that the seniors’ experience in Broadway Revue had on them. In addition to the senior spotlight, there were many opportunities for different performers to shine. In many performances, solos are few and scarce. However, Once Upon A Time was able to bring many different voices into the limelight, which was a great way to show the talent in F&M Players.
Completely student-run, an enormous time commitment, and hard work, the performers, directors, crew, and everyone else involved put on a great performance. It was entertaining, funny, and a wonderful weekend activity. The F&M Players production of Once Upon A Time was a huge success, setting the bar very high for all future student-run and student-created productions.
Sophomore Maxine Musto is a contributing writer, her email is mmusto@fandm.edu