Briarcliff HS Theater Students Prepare for Production of Amélie

If the name “Amélie” triggers a feeling of Déjà-vu, it must be because you are thinking of the popular 2001 French film by the same name. This weekend, Briarcliff High School’s talented theater group will be performing the musical “Amélie.”

In the story, a young, quirky woman performs small acts of kindness. She meets a young man, falls in love and realizes that she will have to risk everything to find happiness. Along the way, she discovers the power of connection and sees possibilities in every corner.

One of the most influential people in Amélie’s life is her father, Raphael, who is a doctor. Briarcliff High School junior Harrison Beckler plays Raphael in his 11th high school production.

“I have played a lot of characters like dads and in the last show I played a doctor, so I’m combining my experiences,” he said. “Raphael’s parenting style is militaristic. He’s very attached to his garden gnome.”

Director Paul Kite said the show is about making connections.

“It’s a show about overcoming the things that you are afraid of in order to reach out and connect with somebody,” he said. “I hope that people know that they can make a connection and that they feel comforted by this.”

“This show has everything,” he added. “There are projections, regular puppetry and shadow puppetry, there are many props. The students are bringing them from home and I made some,” he said.

Amélie is played by Emily Boviero, a senior at the high school, who finds this show very interesting.

“It stimulates my imagination,” she said. “It is a little weird so I hope the audience goes in with an open mind and can see that we have worked hard on this. We’ve spent countless hours.”

Ty Amsterdam, a sophomore who plays Amélie’s love interest, Nino, noted how the show is very abstract with many creative directions.

“The most challenging parts are my favorite parts,” he said.

The students rehearse every day after school for three hours and sometimes things can get comical during rehearsals.

“There is a romantic scene between my love interest and me in the show,” Boviero said. “One day when we were preparing for the scene everyone was crowding around us and really focused on us. It was the kissing scene and the director had us do it over and over. And every time people would clap for us.”

“It was awkward but very funny at the same time,” she added with a smile.

While the students are spending their afternoons rehearsing, they are also learning invaluable skills, Kite observed.

“All of the things that come with theater: being comfortable talking in front of large groups of people and having presence; the kids are internalizing all of this. The show’s producer, Ian Driver, always says ‘we’re in the business of building character,’” he said. “For me, the most exciting part is that once the show starts, there are no grownups that are making it happen. The students are in charge. The students are on stage for three hours, they have to manage themselves, no one is going to tell them where to go. No one is going to check to make sure that you are where you’re supposed to be or check your props for you. It’s a really great responsibility.”

Students will hold three performances this weekend. There will also be a photo booth in the auditorium lobby one hour before the show starts, where all tickets holders can get their photo taken to keep as a memento from the show.

Performance dates:

Friday, March 6 at 7:30 pm

Saturday, March 7 at 7:30 pm

Sunday, March 7 at 2:30 pm

Tickets remain on sale two hours prior to each performance.

https://www.showtix4u.com/event-details/36187