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Finleyville teen grabs leading role

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“Mary Poppins” is set to fly over the rooftops of London and onto the stage of Lincoln Park Performing Arts Center in Midland, Beaver County, for a nine-performance run, beginning Oct. 6, that kicks off the 11th subscription season for the performance venue.

The family-friendly musical features songs from the cherished Disney film, including “A Spoonful of Sugar,” “Chim Chiminey,” “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” and “Step In Time.”

“‘Mary Poppins’ is about the unimaginable power that small gestures of compassion have to supply our lives with happiness, fulfillment and significance,” said Justin Fortunato, Lincoln Park artistic producing director. “Brilliantly, the playwrights have brought the Banks family to life, which is the very heart of ‘Mary Poppins.’

“Although quite similar but not a replica of the film, the stage adaptation is an original musical that honors some of its greatest accomplishments and most reassured moments.”

In the musical performance, Mary Poppins is the practically perfect nanny who helps the audience to learn to take its medicine with a spoonful of sugar, find the silver lining in every situation and use the winds of change to go fly a kite. She brings order to the Banks household, takes Jane and Michael out on magical adventures and dispenses sage advice, such as “anything can happen if you let it.”

“The significance of that philosophy in the show is we are only restricted by the limitations we put on ourselves,” said Fortunato. “If you want something, you can make it a reality, if you trust yourself and are open to all possibilities.”

The cast features Lincoln Park Performing Arts Charter School students and Equity actors. LPPACS senior Amanda Gross will perform the iconic role of Mary Poppins, and junior Mathew Fedorek of Finleyville will play Bert, the head chimney sweep.

Fedorek is excited about performing in his first leading role.

“My favorite thing about being cast as Bert is that I get to play a classic song-and-dance man,” Fedorek said. “As a kid, my mom always told me to watch classic movies starring old Hollywood actors, so I looked up to great performers like Dick Van Dyke, Gene Kelly, Donald O’Connor and Fred Astaire.

“Portraying a character with those charming song-and-dance qualities is a complete dream come true for me.”

Even as a young performer, Fedorek recognizes the impact that dance has in this production.

“The dancing and choreography in this show are so exciting,” he said. “Our choreographer, Jennifer Verba, has made incredibly intricate choreography, where everything is done for a very specific purpose.

“The show includes many dance styles, including tap, soft shoe and ballet. The hardest and most fun for me is the tapping in ‘Step In Time,’ because it is the first time I will tap as a lead role, so I do feel pressure even though this style of dance brings me an unmatched joy.”

Equity actors Allan Snyder and Erika Strasburg are George and Winifred Banks, respectively, and seventh-graders Grace Vensel and Cameron Tino play Jane and Michael Banks, respectively.

Show times are 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, Oct. 6-21, and 2 p.m. Sundays, Oct. 8-22. Tickets are $20, $18 and $15, and are available by calling 724-576-4644, option 2 for the box office, or online at www.LincolnParkArts.org.

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