Once Upon A Mattress

I am a huge fan of musicals, they combine three of my favorite activities to perform and watch into one; singing, dancing, and acting. The only part of Huntley High School’s production of Once Upon a Mattress that I was not fully engaged was the musical intro just before the curtain opened, but that is simply due to personal preference. While I can appreciate instrumental music, it alone does not hold my attention. Once the story began, my attention was held for the entire time. Everytime Lady Larken and Sir Harry were together, I felt a strong connection between the two characters. When the two sang their duets, I believed that they were in love. My only problem with the couple is that I did not truly understand why an argument began between the two and why it abruptly ended

I just was not fully sure who they were though, but again, this may just be the writing. Random details into these characters lives were revealed, yet there was no development of these characters. It almost felt as if these characters were half written, but I could tell that the actors took the time to develop the characters themselves. Even though the audience did not know the full story of the Minstrel, Jester, and Wizard, I believe that the actors knew the whole story. My favorite aspect of the musical was the comedic characters such as Princess Winnifred, Prince Dauntless, Queen Aggravain, and King Sextimus. I believe that the actors fully embraced the characters and did not hold back. Since the actors did hold themselves back, the humor stood out. A problem actors may face when performing comedy is the fear of embarrassment. When having to perform an over-the-top action, such as when Prince Dauntless threw a temper tantrum, many actors will hold themselves back due to the fear of looking ridiculous. The problem with that is that when actors do not go full out, they actually look