Scarsdale Seniors Put On a Happy Face at Weekend Production of Bye Bye Birdie

Each year it’s a Scarsdale tradition for the senior class to put on a musical starring the kids who haven’t had the chance to be onstage throughout high school. This year was no different: the cast of Bye Bye Birdie was mainly made up of kids who you might not expect to be involved in a musical. There were athletes, Speech and Debate team members, and Model UN kids. After only seven weeks of rehearsal, the show had a three-day run from May 17th to 19th in the Scarsdale High School auditorium.

The two female leads, Lindsay Gelles as Rosie and Becca Sklar as Kim, were standouts in the cast. Both girls had lovely singing voices and great stage presence as their characters. Lindsay is an avid dancer and she got to show that off in a few of her numbers, especially the Shriner’s Ballet and Spanish Rose. Christina Coco and Simon Krohn were the funniest people onstage. Christina played Willy Wonka in the class of 2019’s eighth grade musical, and is known for her singing, so it was no surprise that she brought so much to the role of Mae Peterson. Simon, on the other hand, is known for being a Scarsdale athlete. As Harry MacAfee, he brought so much personality to his character and had the audience laughing on almost all of his lines.

The show came together under the production team, and the leadership of Director Katie Nova with help from Assistant Director Aerin Gelblum. Each aspect of the production- direction, music, choreography, costumes, publicity, props, sets, and makeup- were headed by students. Class advisors Carol D’Angelo and Michael Egan produced the show, and Steve Bogardus was the technical advisor, but other than that, the seniors took responsibility for their jobs and made sure everything that they were in charge of got done.

The whole community came to see the show, from families of cast members to high school classmates to parents bringing their elementary schoolers. Everyone in the cast had a great time working on the show. The senior musical is a great Scarsdale tradition that leaves enduring final memories of high school for everyone involved.