Lynnfield Community Schools performed “Disney’s Descendants the Musical” on July 26, 27, and 28.
LCS offers programs for before- and after-school care, “enrichment activities” throughout the year, and a summer program, according to its website.
The play was open to rising fourth graders up to seniors in high school, LMS Drama Director Shay Wainwright said.
“I’m really proud of what the kids accomplished this summer. It was an ambitious show to do in a short period of time, and they worked incredibly hard on it,” she said. “I really love the part of my job that allows me to give the students I work with a chance to really stretch themselves and learn what they’re capable of doing, and all of the production team did a tremendous job.”
The production team was made up of students or recent graduates, Wainwright said.
“Our stage manager, Jada Moga, had never stage managed before and in fact it was only the second show she had ever been part of; our musical director, my daughter Veronica Wainwright, had never directed before, and she also ran the sound board, which she had never done before; of our six choreographers, five of them had never choreographed before,” she said.
“Onstage, the actors worked so hard — we had very short rehearsals, which meant very little downtime and a lot to learn every day, and they got up to speed so much faster than I ever expected they could,” Shay Wainwright said. “They all worked very well together, and you could see that in the richness of the acting in the background of every scene. I was fortunate enough to have worked with most of the actors before in other shows, so I had a good idea of what they were capable of, and they completely exceeded my expectations.”
She said the performances were “beautifully consistent” throughout the weekend.
“Everyone seemed to be having fun both on and off the stage,” Shay Wainwright said. “I couldn’t have been more pleased with how everything went. I’m grateful for the support of LCS Director Morgan Festa in creating this opportunity and to all the cast and crew for making this such a fun way to spend the summer.”
“We loved doing a summer show through Lynnfield Community Schools for the first time! It was a great success!” Festa said.
Rising LHS sophomore Abigail Harris, who played Maleficent, said her favorite memory was lip-synching the songs backstage with the rest of the cash and crew.
“The most memorable part of the performances was when we would hear the opening music, and everyone would get super excited and jittery!” she said.
Rising LHS sophomore Katie McGuinness, a choreographer, said the best part of rehearsals were seeing the passion and hard-work everyone put into the show.
“Watching choreography that started as notes become a full performance was an incredible experience,” she said.
Rising LHS freshman Mia Martins, who played Audrey, said her favorite memory was “watching the show come together” after experimenting with their roles and working with the cast.
“The most memorable part of the performances was seeing how the audience reacted to some things we did on stage and bonding with my cast mates on stage,” she said. “Another thing I want to say was how much fun the show was to do, how Shay did a really good job putting it together in such a short time, and seeing how much effort everyone put into the show.”
Rising LMS eighth-grader Chase Lynds, who played Chad, said he admires the talents and hard work he noticed from his peers.
“I always look forward to seeing everyone involved and how the show comes to life,” he said. “I can’t wait to audition for the next one. It is such a fun experience and I always feel a little sad when it’s over!”
Rising LMS seventh-grader Anthony Paone, who played Carlos and was also a choreographer, said his favorite memory was working with Shay Wainwright and his friends.
“If it wasn’t for the show this summer, I would’ve been bored out of my mind!” he said.
Rising LMS seventh-grader Aidan Rystrom, who played Ben, said learning new choreography was a memorable part of the experience and the “amazing feeling of when you finally get a step right.”
He said he also remembers Shay Wainwright allowing him to eat cookies on stage for the potioned cookies and swiping some from backstage.
“Things memorable from performance weekend include the massive amounts of mic tape I had to use and rip off, and the feeling right after a show when you just feel so ecstatic and proud that all your hard work paid off,” Rystrom said.
Rising fifth-grade at Our Lady of the Assumption School Henry Morton, who played Maurice and Gil, said he enjoyed watching his peers do their run-throughs during rehearsals.
“Backstage I would watch everyone sing and dance, and when I was on stage, I felt joy! I feel like everybody had felt the same way!” he said. “One of my best memories from the performance is when we were all on stage together and something funny would happen and the audience would laugh and then it made me laugh too! I felt like I could finally just be me on stage! Acting is one of my favorite things too, and I’m sure that the cast also enjoys acting!”
Rising fourth-grader at Huckleberry Hill Elle DiGaetano, who played Red Hearts and Ariana, said she enjoyed singing her song with Sienna and learning the dance moves.
“Dress rehearsal in our costumes and microphones was my favorite part of rehearsing. I never got to use the microphone before so that was really cool,” she said. “I also loved giving out the star wishes. That was really nice to tell my friends how great they were.”
LCS will also run a musical at LMS in the spring, directed by Stacey D’Onofrio, for second through eighth graders.
Further information on the spring 2025 and summer 2025 shows, including how and when to sign up, will be posted this fall on the LCS website, https://sites.google.com/lynnfield.k12.ma.us/community-schools/.
