BROOKINGS – The fall play at Brookings High School is “Mary Poppins,” but it features a very different take on the classic many know and love.
The Broadway musical will be staged at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 21, and Friday, Nov. 22, and at 2 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 23, in BHS Bell Auditorium.
Tickets cost $6 for adults and $4 for students and seniors and can be purchased in the BHS Activities Office from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. through Nov. 22. Tickets will also be available at the door before each performance. Activity tickets must be presented at the time of purchase and at the door.
Director and former high school English teacher Gayle Klinker said that the play this year does not have the same lightness as the 1964 Walt Disney classic with Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke.
“It’s really about a dysfunctional family,” said Klinker. “It’s about money issues and success within a community that they’re trying to be a part of. And Mary Poppins comes back in a brings the family together.”
This rendition of the musical takes place in Victorian-era England, where the Banks family faces economic and social downturns and struggles.
Klinker assured there will be the iconic songs like “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” despite the more serious approach of the play.
The play is projected to run about 2 1/2 hours and features a constantly changing handmade set along with a full pit orchestra. The performances are led by Hannah Murphy, who plays Mary Poppins; Jack Ackman, who plays Bert; along with Francie Grimsley and Kennedy Gibson who play Jane and Michael Banks.
Contact Matthew Rhodes at mrhodes@brookingsregister.com.
