The Princess Knight DDHS

This past weekend, I, along with many of the original cast and crew, got to attend the Delavan Darien High School's performances of the Princess Knight. It was such a wonderful experience returning to the world of the show and seeing it through a whole new set of young actors and actresses. There were many surprises in the newest interpretation that had me smiling so hard my face hurt and laughing to tears a few times! It was a proud moment watching the original cast speak to their counterparts. Seeing the size difference between Sandstones Max and Anthony , the similarities between our Chesters John and Gordon, our princesses, who are already fast friends, Kim and Ashley, our nerdy and uptight Doc Libby meeting the relaxed and groovy Therapist Ryan, Not-so-giant Giants Missa and Bebheann exchanging BOOMS! , the Emperors Tom and Alex telling each other what was more wonderful! And to bring back together many of the first family to meet our newest generation. Kaitlin, our costume designer, asked me if I felt like a proud grandparent, and I suppose I do. I got to sit back and enjoy the show without having to discipline you all this time! :D Ashley Brouwer as Princess Scarlet was so top-notch, I do not doubt that she has a very bright future on the stage. Of course, I don't want to go on and on about the natural potential she clearly has and how impressed I was, because we gotta keep her humble so she maintains that natural poise. So, shhhhh - It'll be our secret for now. Then we can all say "We knew her when". >wink< Ryan Ettner's Therapist as an entirely new interpretation as a peace loving hippie was fantastic. I'm certain myself and the original cast were laughing twice as hard as anyone because of how different it was from Libby's Doc. Ryan made it his own in so many ways. I'm glad I saw the show all three nights, because I was caught so off guard by the new version of The Therapist, I was laughing too hard to hear some of the lines. Anthony Welch's Prince Sandstone may have been half the size of Max, but he owned the role. I particularly enjoyed him getting ALL the girls in the end. Oh, and that mustache was so manly it made him sing down an octave on Saturday! Candace would be insanely proud of the wicked way Toni Seitz carried on the tradition of Vesper. Toni had a high bar to reach, and she did not disappoint. Vesper was a wonderfully loathsome as the original, and Toni took plenty of chances to revel in the evil! I must say that "Love/Hate" was my favorite song each night. Toni and Ryan just nailed it (with the help of Matt and Gordon pantomiming stage center). And Ermegehrd! Speaking of Gordon. What a great introducing to the world of theater. To imagine that this was Gordon's first show! He was definitely the right guy for the role. Chester is meant for that actor who never gets to be the male lead. Chester is meant for those guys who always get supporting roles as sidekicks. From what I have heard, Gordon has come out of his shell and is now at home in the theater world. And not to draw out the antici.....SAY IT!pation, but I did so love the Baron Von Briar Thorn as performed by Matt Iserloth. Another actor who definitely has a future on the stage. Standing up on the chair to yell, the goggles falling on his face, embracing the rock star moments of "A Whole New Baron" - Woo! Matt played the part like a pro, and it was clear how much fun he was having playing it. He even found moments that Nat didn't in the original, and that makes me proud. Sarah Keiffer succeeded in the daunting task of learning the lion's share of dialogue Lily needs to know. Not an easy task. Musicals don't tend to have that many monologues, and Lily has several. Think of it like this, Sarah, you got to do the equivalent of a play and a musical at the same time; it's double the show for a senior about to head out into the college world. I'm thrilled that as Lily, Sarah was able to blow the doors off the place when she finally got her chance to sing! I was told that the last note of her solo was the first note of the very first song she sang as a senior. Our new royalty, Emily Santeler and Alex Koch, wore their crowns well. I wish Rachel had been able to see Emily's Rose Petal, which was pleasantly similar in wonderful ways. And Alex as Prickle was pleasantly different than Tom. Alex's excitement was overflowing, and it was a treat to be sitting in front of Tom and hearing him enjoy at the performance. The Wolf, Giant, and Troll as performed by Aaron, Bebheann, and Jacob made for quite the trio. I'm pleased to see that the bone and Viking hat remained. It wouldn't feel like the Giant without those being wielded about! Continuing tradition as well, Aaron's incredible voice brought tears to my eyes with "The Wolf's Lament". Megan did it to me every time, and Aaron did too. And major congrats to Jacob as the Troll. He only had about a week to truly learn the part, and he was perfect. Liam sword fighting, Adam wielding that butcher's blade, Anya's "Cwick and Novak-like" excitement in every scene, Taylor's ditsy Baker, Mickey losing all his heart containers, Zach's "Oh no he didn't!" Was it Nicole or Caitlin who fell to her knees when Sandstone announces his marriage? (Forgive me, I only just met all of you.) Morgan as the Blue Fairy, Mary's speed with that sword! And to all the parents and families I got to meet this weekend as well. It means so much to me to see your support for the kids and their creativity. That love for the arts will keep the Arts alive. It was so amazing to experience it all again. Thank you, everyone, for your hard work and most of all, for having so much fun doing it. Thank you to Larry for not charging ME by the note this time, Bette and Marisa for still dealing with those costumes. And to Janet Palmer for keeping the Princess Knight alive and thriving. Now, all of you take all those pictures and videos you have from the run and start posting them to the group page!

T.C. De Witt