Although the majority of the cast is under five feet tall, there is nothing “little” about this show, or the message it instilled into its audience.
After being completely obsessed with the soundtrack for months, I was fortunate enough to see Matilda the Musical on its national tour during its Detroit, Michigan stop…and I was surely blown away. The pint-sized cast packs a punch.
For those not familiar with the background of the show, Matilda the Musical follows a five-year-old telekinetic schoolgirl (Matilda Wormwood, played by Savannah Grace Elmer in the production I saw) and her emotionally abusive home-life under parents (Mr. and Mrs. Wormwood, played by Quinn Mattfeld and Cassie Silva) who see her as a disappointment despite her genius capabilities, as well as the emotional bond she shares with her sweet teacher, appropriately named Miss Honey (played by Jennifer Blood). I personally had never read the book as a child and wasn’t familiar with the plot line before seeing the show- being dedicated solely to the musical stylings of the production- but left the theater both teary-eyed and uplifted. The plot of Matilda runs deeper than I had imagined and I was extremely surprised to see how little I knew of the show, despite knowing every word of every song. This kept the production exciting for me to watch.
In general, everything was overwhelmingly well-done.
The set itself was gorgeous, and perfectly captured the essence of Roald Dahl. The stage is constantly bordered by alphabet blocks, and transforms from eerie to uplifting due to the implemented lighting effects. Matilda’s bedroom is rightfully minimalist and bleak, while her escape- the local library- is bright and cheery while harboring letter-block seats with the word “love” printed on them. Within the library, projections are implemented as Matilda recites heart-wrenching stories to Mrs. Phelps (Ora Jones) about The Acrobat (Ashley Elizabeth Hale) and The Escape Artist (Darius Wright), which were transfixing. Children swing on planks hung from fly space, flip over gym equipment, dance on desks, and so much more. My favorite set piece would have to be the office of Miss Trunchbull (David Abeles) and the shelf for her trophies recoginzing her olympic hammer-throwing feats.
The way the characters moved and spoke screamed “storybook”. From the sharp jolty dance moves to the proclamations of the schoolchildren, I felt transfixed in the world of Matilda. Picking a favorite character in this production is like picking a favorite childhood pet…that is to say- extremely difficult. Although I loved all of the characters in the performance, I was partial to Lavender (Charlie Kersh), Matilda’s self-identified best friend. She provided an adorable and comical breath of fresh air in some of the most intense scenes. However, all the cast gave wonderful performances. I turned to my friend at intermission and immediately said “this is extremely well-executed…everything feels SO Roald Dahl.”
Speaking of intermission…
A definite highlight of the show was Mr. Wormwood’s serenade to the audience- “Telly“. While listening to the soundtrack, I figured this song would have been sang during an exchange between Matilda and her father. I was pleasantly shocked to witness it become a comical intermission show that opened act two and engaged interaction between the audience.
By the time I left the theater, I was emotionally drained- feeling enlightened, heart-broken, heart-mended, and wishing I could be back in Detroit’s Fisher Theatre seeing it all over again.
In addition to the show itself, the entire takeaway of the musical instilled quite a lot of hope into me for all of the children who are currently trying to pursue a career in theatre. The talent of an ambitious child should never be undermined. Watching a group of adolescents get on stage and deliver such an amazing story and affect an audience (consisting not only of many youth, but a great number of adults as well) so deeply, showed me over and over that kids are capable of an infinite number of amazing things.
This show’s youth-heavy cast clearly drove their point home: “even if you’re little you can do a lot” and never ‘let a little thing like ‘little’ stop you”.
To all the theater kids out there: Continue following your passions. You are more than capable of “changing your story”.
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