As a graduating senior, I have to say that one of my favorite memories of high school was being involved in drama club. Last weekend, I volunteered as an usher for HHS’ fantastic production of Anything Goes. The show ran from Friday, May 6th to Sunday, May 8th, and was directed by Mr. Harden, with assistance from Mr. Plummer and Mr. Schnelle. The show featured many talented performers, with lead roles played by Maddy Carroll, Billy Porter, Macy Hohenleitner, Justy Carney, Bruno Barbuto and Katie Scott. Other supporting roles and a strong ensemble also undoubtedly contributed to a successful show, with a strong energy and stage presence coming from every performer.

The Broadway classic takes place on a ship called the S.S. American, which serves passengers from the United States to England. Lead character Billy Crocker (played by Billy) disguises himself as infamous gangster SnakeEyes Johnson in order to earn a ticket on the boat to impress the girl of his dreams, Hope Harcourt (played by Macy), who is about to marry Sir Evelyn (played by Justy), a wealthy Englishman. As the play goes on, Hope realizes she is truly in love with Billy, who eventually confesses his sins for posing as“Public Enemy Number One.” Another unforgettable role was Reno Sweeney (played by Maddy), a famous nightclub singer also making an appearance on the ship, who realizes she is in love with Sir Evelyn, winning him over with the help of friends Billy and Moonface (played by Bruno.) Something I found very amusing within the storyline was that Billy’s angry boss (played by Alex Linn) was also riding on the ship, with Billy fearing he would get caught by him the whole time. Many other supporting characters such as a southern priest, two Chinese immigrants, Hope’s strict mother, the captain and purser of the ship, and Reno’s dancing “angels” also contributed to make the show so worthwhile.

Some notable songs in the show included “Friendship,” which was a completely non-romantic upbeat song sung by Billy, Reno and Moon; “I Get A Kick Out of You” sung by Reno about Sir Evelyn; and “Be Like The Bluebird,” an inspirational song providing comic relief sung by Moon when he and Billy are placed in the ship’s one jail cell. One of the most phenomenal numbers told on stage was “Blow, Gabriel, Blow.” It featured the entire ensemble, with excellent lead vocals by Reno. It was great to see the entire cast singing, dancing and acting together while having a great time doing it. We are truly lucky to have so much talent offered by our school’s students to result in such a high quality production. If you didn’t make an appearance at this show, I would highly recommend seeing the next one, because I promise the HHS Theatre Guild doesn’t disappoint!