School musical: A MASD tradition

Theatre is alive and thriving at the Meyersdale Area School District. In just a few days, an amazing cast of student thespians will be presenting Once Upon a Mattress for family, friends and the community. Musical theater has been an important tradition for more than four decades at MAHS and this year’s cast is proud to be a part of that tradition!

This classic musical, with music by Mary Rodgers and lyrics from Marshall Barer, will be performed in November. An interpretation of The Princess and the Pea, the story depicts a fairytale kingdom forbidden by its queen from marrying until her son finds a suitable princess; however, the overbearing mother sabotages any potential candidate. The downtrodden kingdom becomes turned upside down when Princess Winnifred emerges from the swamp to try the latest test. Aided by her new friends, the lovers Larken and Harry, a silent king, a mischievous jester, and a storytelling minstrel, Winnifred proves to everyone that “a genuine princess is exceedingly rare.”

Of the production’s 36 cast members, three of its seniors, in the weeks leading up to the show, reflected on the bonds and memories over the last three years. Kylee Haer (Princess Winnifred), Emma Kretchman (Lady Larken), and Olivia Baker (King Sextimus) are all finishing musical careers that started with 2023’s Hello, Dolly!, followed by last year’s Shrek the Musical.

Inspired by former MAHS cast members and directors, each young lady cherishes the musical’s sense of community.

For Haer, former vocal teacher Miss Labrina Ritchey was her greatest inspiration. “She has never doubted me no matter the situation, and has encouraged me to join musical from the start. I wouldn’t be where I am today without her and I am so forever grateful for all she has done for me,” Haer explained. “Musical has a special place in my heart, and I am sad to see this chapter of my life come to a close.”

Kretchman wanted to follow in the footsteps of former leads Lizzie Sayler and Laura Boyce. “Watching Lizzie and Laura perform was truly magical and inspiring. They always talked about musical, and when they did, you could just see by the way their moods shifted and their excitement that musical truly was life-changing for them. That was something I wanted to experience,” Kretchman added, “This year I used the faith Mr. Edwards has in me to persevere and go out of my comfort zone to help make this musical great.”

In a similar sense, Baker also turned to her peers, Avery Logsdon and Shelby Hetz, for motivation on her individual growth. She especially relates to the latter because both were tasked with playing male roles for their respective senior shows. “The final musical reflects all the hard work we’ve put into the musical and how much I’ve grown as an individual because of it. Seeing the final outcome after a lot of hard work is special.”

All three specified the fun, upbeat, even chaotic song and dances as personal highlights of this year’s show. Winnifred’s arrival, “Shy” is “upbeat, fun, and genuinely funny.” “Normandy” assembles an unlikely quartet of characters in a song of friendship and unity. Finally, “Song of Love” is an entertaining, chaotic jumble of song, dance, cheer and weightlifting.

The 2025 cast of Once Upon a Mattress includes Baker, Bayleigh Beal, Kira Beitzel, Leah Boyce, Tea Carlyle, Sage Clapper, Cullen Clark, Bella Delawder, Mallory Emerick, Lillian Eyer, Haer, Emma Hobbs, Abigail Homa, Trinity Hoover, Liam Hummel, Abigail Ickes, Jackson Johnson, Addison Kennell, Kretchman, Macey Logsdon, Destinne Manuel, Ashley Miller, Chalyce Miller, Zaylie Miller, Lilly Moore, Candice Murray, Taylor Pritts, Richard Purbaugh, Brooke Sell, Maria Sellers, Logan Simpkins, Ava Steinberg, Rayne Stevanus, Cassandra Thomas, Rosa Tummino and Cole Yoder.