Whether you saw the somewhat older and more experienced Newt cast, or the equally talented and energetic Chalk cast — or both — it is impossible to argue that this summer’s NewArts version of the musical Matilda was anything short of professional grade.

The dual cast of Roald Dahl’s dark but redeeming production was brought to life over the first two weekends in August by a combined cast and crew numbering well over 100. This year’s participants, from the phenomenal Joseph DeVellis, who portrayed the deliciously campy but appropriately nasty Agatha Trunchbull, to the youngest ensemble members carried onward and upward a tradition of theatrical excellence that Newtown’s NewArts organization has made its hallmark since forming in 2013.

Since that first post-12/14 summer, when many young creative types in town were still recovering from the Sandy Hook tragedy, NewArts launched, combining expertly produced musicals with ARC, a character development program promoting strength, confidence, and emotional regulation aimed at helping each participant discover grit, resilience, and greater well-being.

And by the end of each production run, everyone involved reaped the benefits.

Less than 48 hours after Matilda’s final curtain call at Masuk High School in Monroe, Director Michael Unger was back on stage dismantling of sets and packing rented equipment ahead of a well-deserved family vacation before his departure to a brand new post as artistic director at Skylight Music Theatre in Milwaukee. Mr Unger also took a few minutes to chat with The Newtown Bee and look back on some of the high points of this year’s summer musical.

After each of the shows, including the August 11 finale, he said, it was hard to judge whether the young thespians, or their parents, siblings, and guests were more thrilled.

“Everybody was so jazzed, and every show got better and better for each cast,” Mr Unger observed.

“I feel this was as fully a realized production as we’ve had — much like School of Rock,” he added, referencing the organization’s 2016 production. “But I think our Matilda could have stood up against any regional production of the play anywhere. Both casts had gems of performances, and I was so excited to see how high-level everyone was every moment they were on stage.”

It was not lost on the NewArts director that over the course of the two productions attended by The Bee, each of the actors portraying the title role of Matilda was pressed into impromptu dealings with technical issues.

On August 4, Matiya Kouassi mustered on terrifically with a complicated first act scene involving a silhouette projector that suddenly became unplugged — leaving her to expertly navigate dialogue in tandem with an offstage actor without any accompanying visual prompts. On August 11, Scarlet Tanzer quickly realized her body microphone was not working in her opening scene and compensated magnificently, pushing the volume on her dialogue and opening song, effectively projecting over the orchestra’s swell with the presence of mind to avoid sounding forced or shrill.

“They both adjusted like pros,” Mr Unger complimented.

Both casts did equally well delivering on difficult choreography.

“Unlike last year’s Newsies, which focused on a core group of more skilled dancers for the complex dance numbers, in Matilda, all the kids were dancing all the time.”

Actors As Stage Hands

Mr Unger also praised the many leads and ensemble members who served in dual capacities, helping to move everything from huge set pieces designed to look like massive books to a classroom full of school desks, other scenic furnishings, and the notorious “telly” into place with great precision and effect.

“Because the set pieces are so big and there are 11 desks to bring on and off stage four times during the show, the kids served as the engine for all those set changes. And there were some itty-bitty kids helping move those huge sets,” he said. “It was probably hard to see, but these kids who ranged from age seven to 20 were actually making all those set changes happen.

“I knew I wanted the set pieces to be large, and there are a lot of short scenes with quick changes. So we moved forward with the intention of making those changes in the background as scenes played out downstage,” the director added.

Speaking of the “telly,” Mr Unger said that high profile set piece was located on Facebook for $20, and was modified with an onboard power source and monitor that could be controlled remotely from a backstage iPad so it could be actively moved around the stage while playing specific content, without the obstacle of wiring to trip anyone up or limit its range of motion.

The aforementioned silhouette projector and corresponding shadow play scenes were also initially perplexing to the director.

“When I came for the first day of rehearsal, I wasn’t exactly sure how to tackle the acrobat story in the shadow play, because I didn’t know anyone who was a puppeteer,” Mr Unger recalled. “I knew how I wanted it presented, but didn’t know how I was going to do it.”

Enter NewArts Director of Education Danny Dyer.

“Danny said he had built some puppets and didn’t have much experience with shadows, but he was willing to give it a whirl. So he created 40 puppets, and each cast was instructed on how to manipulate them,” he said. “It was a great opportunity for the kids to become more involved to do something very unique, and it provided a vocabulary to that storytelling that was exactly what I was looking for, kid style. Luckily, Danny stepped up and did a tremendous job. It ended up better than I ever expected.”

Mr Unger added that most productions of Matilda use pre-produced projections of the shadow puppets or a film, while the NewArts production was somewhat unique in that it had not one, but two separate groups of live puppeteers manipulating the images for each Chalk and Newt production.

“This was also kid-powered, like the set changes,” he said.

Unique Set Pieces

NewArts audiences this year witnessed the first use of massive books that spun around and opened into various sets like Matilda’s bedroom and Miss Honey’s cozy kitchen.

“We adapted those from Newsies and put spines, covers, and pages on them to convert them into the kinds of books that Matilda describes reading,” Mr Unger said. “I wanted those scenes to open like a book. [In prior productions], set pieces involve little kids’ letter boxes, but Matilda is a bit older, and she’s not into letters, she’s into books. So using little letter boxes felt wrong to me. So I worked with the designer to create the books.

“I don’t know anyone else who has done this with the production,” he said. “This was our idea.”

Because of certain sensitivities to the 12/14 tragedy, in prior productions, Mr Unger has been pressed to alter original lyrics that he found inappropriate or offensive, and this year was no different. Upon contacting Tim Minchin, Matilda’s original writer and lyricist, Unger found someone who was completely on board with accommodating those changes.

“There were just some lyrics that would just not fly for me in Newtown, and they were very generous in letting me change what I have to change,” he said.

Finally, there was the unanticipated and seemingly perfect casting of Joseph DeVellis.

“I knew he would be funny in the role, but never realized how devastating his truth would be in terms of his insight into Agatha’s damage,” Mr Unger said. “His acting was able to convey why Trunchbull is the way she is, similarly to Scrooge, who is so often played simply as a jerk. But if you understand what broke his or her heart as a child and you can make that villain someone you can sympathize with, you’ve won.

“Joey’s character had such depth in those scenes where he’s arguing with Matilda, you just believe she was so damaged as a child that she grew up into the incredibly mean and insecure adult he portrays. To really feel Agatha’s history is something that set Joey above and beyond,” he said. “In fact, Van Dean, who is one of the original Matilda producers and who has seen every Trunchbull on Broadway and in London, said Joey was among the three best he’s ever seen.”

Looking to the future and his new job in Wisconsin, Mr Unger said Newtown will still be on his mind as he mulls the possibility of restaging A Christmas Carol this winter. Stay tuned for more news on that front in the coming weeks.

In the meantime, to learn more about NewArts, visit newarts.org or follow the organization on social media.