Farmingdale High School Playcrafters perform Once on This Island
(Photo courtesy of The Farmingdale School District)
Welcome to the Caribbean. The Farmingdale High School Playcrafters proudly presented their rendition of Once on This Island. This exciting one-act musical is based on My Love, My Love: or The Peasant Girl by Rosa Guy, inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid. A story about a peasant girl falling in love above her class, told around a fire by a group of Caribbean peasants as they wait out a terrible storm.
“Once on This Island is one of my favorite musicals of all time,” Farmingdale High School Director Jessica Mischke said. “This beautiful story of how one seemingly insignificant girl becomes myth and hope for those she left behind demonstrates how the good we do echoes and continues long after our lives are over.”
The standout cast, which featured several NYSSMA honored all-state musicians, kept the audience engaged throughout the entire one-act musical. Juniors Molly Keena and Makai Jones performed the starring roles of fearless peasant girl Ti Moune and her affluent love interest Daniel. The powerful island gods, Erzulie (Trinity Babino), Asaka (Raniyah Elguerouat), Papa Ge (Rebecca Kenjesky), and Agwe (Matthew Murrell), guided Ti Moune on a remarkable quest to reunite with the man who captured her heart. Ti Moune’s adoptive mother and father were played by seniors Riley Leahy and Ben Hoffman. Sophomores Ryan Sweeney and Ava Monteleone had the roles of Daniels’s father and fiance. Rounding out the cast, playing the part of the little girl, was Albany Avenue Elementary School fourth-grader Stella Levenson.
“We are so grateful to perform our annual musical,” Mischke said. “Once on This Island demonstrates that by giving love and sharing our stories, we can bring everyone together toward the greater good.”
No musical production would be complete without a reliable, talented production staff. Pit Conductor Ed Kozlowski led the orchestra, assisted by Pat Facchiano, while Jamie Capasso and Erik Chocianowski headed design and construction. Lastly, Joseph Hasset, Cherie Dreyfus and Corey Sterler managed lighting and sound.
Director Jessica Mischke and Assistant Director/Choreographer Erik Mischke’s presentation of Once on This Island was a colorful tale of inspiration and hope. It was a beautiful gift from the Farmingdale Playcrafters to the community as we enter the holiday season.
For more information about the Farmingdale Union Free School District, visit the www.farmingdaleschools.org and like the Facebook page: @FarmingdaleSchoolDistrict.
—Submitted by the Farmingdale Union Free School District
