Three wishes for success with Aladdin Jr. production

By Alejandra Pulido-Guzman - Lethbridge Herald on April 30, 2022.

Herald photo by Alejandra Pulido-Guzman Father Leonard Van Tighem School drama students Miguel Macias as Aladdin and Mercy Awosoga as Jasmine, run through a scene of their upcoming Aladdin Jr. production Tuesday at the school's gymnasium.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDapulido@lethbridgeherald.com

Father Leonard Van Tighem School Drama students are gearing up to finally be able to showcase their upcoming production which has been three years in the making.
Aladdin Jr, which was originally going to be showcased in 2020, will be finally on stage next week for a two day performance at the Yates Memorial Theatre.
“This is the first time the school has ever done a Disney musical, and we are really excited to be able to perform something that people are familiar with,” said Michele Loman, Aladdin Jr. director.
She said they had to start from scratch this year when rehearsing for the play, as some characters had to be recasted as the students playing them were in Grade 9 in 2020 and therefore no longer at the school.
“We’ve gone through two years of students, and we had to basically recast the entire show. I’ve only got about three students that were in the first production, and they’ve all been assigned new roles and are doing something new this year,” said Loman.
One of those students is Mercy Awosoga, a Grade 9 student who was originally cast as the Genie for the 2020 production and now is playing Jasmine.
“It’s been amazing to be able to experience it again with a new role,” said Awosoga.
She said that even though she enjoyed her previous role, she likes playing Jasmine better.
The genie role was taken over by Haylee Kroetsch, another Grade 9 student, who was originally cast as a guard.
“I moved my way up and I’m quite loving it. I’ve loved it since the first year and I’ve made a lot of fun friends and it’s a great experience,” said Kroetsch.
Both Awosoga and Kroetsch had experience on stage and said they are comfortable on it, as they both attended St. Patrick Fine Arts School, where they had the chance to perform at an early age.
Unlike the other two main characters, the role of Aladdin is played by a first time performer, Miguel Macias.
“I’m a lead role because next year I’m gone. It’s a lot of pressure for sure, but I’m enjoying it so much. I love theatre,” said Macias.
He said the performance is coming together well as they have a great cast and teachers helping them behind the scenes.
Loman said the production has definitely been a team project.
“Cathie Martin-Weersink is our gal for the music, I do most of the dancing choreography, Jessica Johnson had a class where they focused on doing the props and the set. They were building and painting and putting all of the things together for us,” said Loman.
She added that Dina Henderson and Sue Weighill helped with the costumes, making sure they had everything ready to go.
Loman said the shows will take place May 3 and May 4, with performances during the day for the different schools in the division and those open for the general public will take place at night.
Tickets are $10 for adults and $8 for students, and available by calling the school, or at the door for those who are not part of FLVT or through school cash online for those who are.
Performances will take place at the Yates Memorial Theatre at 7:00 p.m. both days.

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