By Chelsea Benjamin
I recently had the opportunity to watch Once Upon a Mattress with my friend Brittany. This wonderful little show was one we had both seen on different occasions and we were excited to see Lehi City Arts’ version of Once Upon A Mattress.
Walking into the Lehi Arts Center I was welcomed into a very warm and laid-back environment. Music was playing and excitement grew as the show began. As the lights came up on the first scene we were greeted by the Minstrel, played by Max Durrant, and his lovely tenor voice (and stylistic choice of always moving his hands to the gentle music) as he told the tale of the princess and pea. Of course the Mistrel’s three-minute tale of the fairytale was a short and sweet version of what truly happened as he had lived it.
As the characters were introduced, the audience soon finds out that no one in the kingdom is allowed to marry until the prince does. But the queen does not want her son to marry, and claims it is because not any old princess will do. Once Upon A Mattress really gets going as the twelfth princess is taking the Queen’s obviously unfair test. Like all the eleven princesses before her she fails, and Sir Harry takes it upon himself to go find another available princess. The princess he finds is not one anyone expects, and the castle is turned upside down upon the arrival of Princess Winnifred the Woebegone, or Fred for short. With the Prince taking an instant liking to Fred (because she is the girl who swam the moat) it will take extra effort from the Queen to get this rambunctious princess away from her son.
Queen Aggravain, played by Anne-Marie DeOllos, was frightening but at times in the most funny way. She held herself in a very royal manner. She gave a powerful and strong performance that filled the room and demanded attention any time she entered the stage. There was no turning away, especially once the plot thickened and the audience finds out that she is scheming with the Wizard, played by John Fletcher, who had very good projection and a strong presence, that she planned on making Winnifred’s test impossible to pass.
King Sextimus the Silent, played by Scott Aaron, was not very silent at all using pantomime and a Jester, played by Tim Merkley, to get his feelings across, he even sang a whole song to his son while silent. I enjoyed his character as the silent king and was refreshed by the fact that he did not come off as perverted as I have seen in other productions as the king chases around the Ladies of the Court. His facial expressions as a mute were great and once the King, Jester, and Minstrel paired up to sing “The Minstrel, the Jester, and I” they gave a very fun performance that had me giggling.
Dauntless the Drab, played by Mark Nott, was certainly a momma’s boy but that did not stop him from wanting to win Winnifred’s heart. Mark Nott’s ability to play a wimpy prince was spot on. He was bashful but very determined and very much in love. His acting and singing was great and I enjoyed laughing with him at his character’s awkward moments as he was swept off his feet by his love for a girl named Fred.
Princess Winnifred the Woebegone, played by Deb Nott, was not at all shy as her character claims but was a delight to watch. From the moment she climbed over the castle wall after swimming the moat, she captured the attention of both Prince Dauntless and the audience. The instant spark shown on stage between Prince and Princess was apparently not all theatre magic, one look in the program shows that their love connection goes beyond the stage since the two have been married for several years. Deb Nott had plenty of spunk needed to play a girl named Fred and a beautiful singing voice that went well with the quirky songs.
Sir Harry, played by Tanner Perelle, and Lady Larken, played by Temera Merkley, were paired perfectly and played very well off each other in their melodramatic acting style. Temera’s soprano was very pretty and a joy to listen to, and Tanner’s acting was strong. The two were opposites and yet the same, their acting styles matched and were very silly characters and extremely expressive, while one was large and robust and the other small and bird-like.
Director Robert Smith kept his many ensemble members and principles in high energy, which made it fun for the audience to watch. Ensemble member Amber Heap, who played Nightingale of Smarkand, was able to show off her gorgeous singing voice in a solo that was both lovely and hilarious at the same time. There was also Sean Aaron as Sir Studley who did an excellent job of living up to his name and dancing the Spanish Panic.
The costumes were sumptuous and very fairytale like, which enhanced the fairytale feel of the show. Kudos to costume designer Lynnea Kartchner. Set designers Jerry Hatch, Robert Brian Smith, and Max Durrant created a set that worked well in this space. Music director Andrea Chapman and Sound by Jean Hatch helped this musical really pop. Choreographer Melissa Aaron Chapman’s dances were great for the space and the level of dancing ability for this cast. They were lovely and easy to watch.
My one issue with Lehi’s production of Once Upon A Mattress was the amount and pace of the scene changes. The show ended up being two and a half hours long, and with half of the audience being around the age of six I found it to be a little drawn out. If the scene changes could happen quicker, the show would be able to be reduced closer to a two-hour more reasonable time limit.
The whole cast had so much energy throughout the run of the show and seemed delighted to act and interact with the children and nearest audience members. One part that I enjoyed so much was that everyone was excited to be there. From the leads down to the ensemble members they were all in the moment and full of energy that translated well to the audience. I would recommend children of all ages to come see Lehi City Art Council’s production of Once Upon A Mattress.
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