Urinetown the Musical took the stage of the Piscataway High School PAC March 5th, 6th and 7th. Don’t let the name fool you, the performance was nowhere near crappy. In fact, it was….. (whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaattttttt?????) incredible.
The satirical musical comedy takes place in a dystopian setting where one must pay to use the restroom. The characters of Officer Lockstock and Little Sally serve as narrators to the play, and explain to the audience that this weird bathroom situation is because of a 20 year drought that caused a major water shortage. To preserve the water, everyone must use public urinals set up around town by the Urine Good Company (UGC). If one does not use the bathroom and pees illegally they will be punished and sent to the mysterious “Urinetown”.
At the urinal company, money-obsessed president Caldwell B. Cladwell keeps raising the prices of the urinals higher and higher. His daughter, Hope, is the new fax and copy girl for the business. Unlike her father, she believes life is beautiful and everyone should follow their heart.
When Hope meets custodian Bobby Strong, who is mourning the disappearance of his own father, they share an immediate connection, and their relationship leads them to challenge the policies of Urinetown and stand up to the people in power.
Seniors Sydney Hain and Katherine Iñdigo both did awesome jobs at playing Officer Lockstock and Officer Barrel. Sydney constantly revealing spoilers about the play to Little Sally out was so funny. Also, Katherine flirting with Bobby Strong every time she saw him and telling Official Lockstock she loved him was very comical.
Junior Liliana Fay played Ms. Pennywise, who managed one of the company toilets, and eventually plays an important part in the second act. She sang one of the first songs in the musical, “It’s a Privilege to Pee”. I was shocked at how high she was able to get her voice, and how she weas able to fill it with menace. Her voice filled the entire theater, and let us know that we were in for a treat!
All the rebels did such a great job too. Bobby Strong, played by sophomore Jarius Gillespie Jr. had a phenomenal voice. “Run Freedom Run” was by far my favorite song and most of the crowd’s as well. The applause after he sang had to be at least a minute long.
Freshman Zari Muhammad, who played Little Sally, was wonderful. She played the role of a curious and witty little girl so well. When I asked her how she liked being in drama club as a freshman she replied saying, “I loved it! The people were so kind to me and being apart of this experience was so fun”.
Everybody that was a part of the Urine Good Company was amusing. Junior Yara Salgado-Cowan was spectacular playing Caldwell B. Cladwell. Her costume, which included a green jacket with gold links on the back was extremely symbolic. In addition, her orange face and blond hair made me think of Donald Trump. She also had an incredible character voice, which was filled with fake sweetness, growls, and shouts. It reminded me of the live action Grinch in a way.
PHS junior Aneesah Bush, who played Hope Cladwell was fantastic. Her character was this sweet young lady who just wanted peace and happiness in the world and she displayed this perfectly. A scene of hers I really liked was when she got up and freed herself from the ropes they had tied her down with so easily. It showed that her character was secretly hiding a lot of power and confidence.
The show was truly incredible. Everybody did such an amazing job and there are still so many people I didn’t get to mention. Here’s a shoutout to the entire cast, crew, and pit. You guys did an awesome job and should be really proud of yourselves. To all the seniors leaving this year, you guys definitely went out with a bang. Continue to follow your dreams. From what I saw throughout the show, I know the stars are the limit!
