Grand Island Senior High (Brian Neben, Central Nebraska Today)
GRAND ISLAND — A tale as old as time is coming to Grand Island Senior High (GISH).
“Disney’s Beauty and the Beast” will take the stage as the GISH Center for Performing Arts brings its annual musical back to the Fall season. A timeless classic filled with theatre spectacle, wondrous costumes, and iconic music — “Beauty and the Beast” will be a fun-filled show for the whole family.
The musical will run Thursday, Oct. 26 and Saturday Oct. 28 at 7 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 29 for a 2 p.m. matinee with all performances on stage at the auditorium of Grand Island Senior High. Tickets will go on sale on September 1st and may be purchased online at www.gips.org/gishtheatre.
“Part of what we wanted to do, in addition to giving our student performers an opportunity to join a fun, classic show, is bring a high-quality production to our community that everyone can enjoy.” Dr. Evan Lee, GIPS Fine Arts Curriculum Coordinator, shared, “We’re excited to have the Disney magic on our stage!”
The cast and crew for the production boasts the talents of nearly one hundred Grand Island Senior High students both on the stage and behind the curtain. An “all hands on deck” approach to bringing the classic Disney title to life.
But there is more. . .
Rounding out the company will be approximately 30 additional Grand Island Public Schools students. Kindergartners through 8th Graders from GIPS will be joining the cast as “extras” to fill the stage in large group numbers.
“We wanted to make this a fun opportunity for more than just our Senior High students.” Dr. Lee continued, “Having younger students join us from across the district is a great opportunity for them to experience what theatre is like at a Class A High School. We want to inspire our up-and-coming student performers by letting them know they have a place here today and in the future. It’ll be fun!”
Overall, the show will showcase talents of nearly 130 students from Grand Island Senior High and GIPS. From iconic songs like, “Be Our Guest” and, “Beauty and the Beast”, and the lasting characters of Belle, Beast, Lumiere, Mrs. Potts, and more — “Disney’s Beauty and the Beast” aims to be a musical to remember for the Grand Island Community.
The cast and crew for the production has been announced:
| Character | Student | |
| Belle | Lauren Brown | |
| Beast | Joe Hayman | |
| Gaston | Alex Weaver | |
| Lefou | Grady Brisnehan | |
| Lumiere | Alek Kuebler | |
| Cogsworth | Orvin Rubio-Hernandez | |
| Mrs Potts | Olivia Madison | |
| Chip | Hana Butters | |
| Babette | Ashlynn Favazza | |
| Madame | Elise Warner | |
| Maurice | Noah Javorsky | |
| Monsieur | Armoni Ewoldt | |
| Silly Girls | Elena Martinez, Sheridan Gapp, Claire Gartner, Katelyn Sodomka | |
| Cronies | Christian Tennant, Charlie Gentry, Brayden Stromer | |
| Narrator | Armoni Ewoldt | |
| Young Prince | Brayden Stromer | |
| Old Beggar Woman | Celia McCoy | |
| Enchantress | Avery Rogers | |
| Shepherd | Elijah Meier | |
| Marie | Ava Stein | |
| Tavern Master | Cael Wiegert | |
| Laundry Lady | Tessa Bockoven | |
| Baker | Logan Ripp | |
| Milk Maid | Sydnee Davis | |
| Flower Seller | Alisea Sweet | |
| Sausage Curl Lady | Kennedy Miller | |
| Candlemaker | Chris Linden | |
| Hat Seller | Adeline Woods | |
| Book Seller | Jayson Shelton | |
| Wolves | Avery Rogers and Select Dance Corps | |
| Gargoyle 1 | Preston Meier | |
| Gargoyle 2 | Maggie Robison |
| Ensemble | Adriana Behrens | Jaylynn Mercer | |
| Adriana Gearhart | Kainen Mora | ||
| Amy Green | Karina Calmo | ||
| Anaaliyah Mendez | Kayedence Hespe | ||
| Anahi Rivera Perez | Keila Camey | ||
| Bailey Rafael | Kenia Garcia | ||
| Bella Roe | Lizzie Stoppkotte | ||
| Bessy Gomez-Lara | Malia McNeal | ||
| Briana Arrieta | Malik Hansen | ||
| Cadence Gidcumb | Marcela Zepeda Cano | ||
| Caprice Ontiveros | Maylee Corado | ||
| Cassidy Boettger | Molly Bressler | ||
| Catalina Luna | Paige Berglund | ||
| Chloe Lopez | Payden Bond | ||
| Damien Hester | Pierre Doan | ||
| Destiny Lucero | Raquel Lopez Perez | ||
| Elaine Shelton | Rihanna Diaz | ||
| Elise Phinney | Riley Seybold | ||
| Emaleigh Dreher | Saydee Gomez | ||
| Faith Diaz | Sofie Betancourt | ||
| Gwenyth Cox | Thomas Casarez | ||
| Hailey Lewandowski | Ulises Acosta | ||
| Isabella Bramble | William Woods | ||
| Jaxstin Deines | Zoie Haar | ||
| Stage Crew | Abiel Dominguez Nunez | ||
| Alex Buchanan | |||
| Faith Puente | |||
| Katie Poe | |||
| Makena Darling | |||
| Sarah Wichman | |||
| (more to be added from cast) |
Performances of “Disney’s Beauty and the Beast” presented by Grand Island Senior High will be October 26th and 28th at 7:00 p.m. and October 29th at 2:00 p.m. at the GISH Auditorium.
Tickets for the musical go on sale starting September 1st and may be purchased online at: www.gips.org/gishtheatre.
Families and the Grand Island community are invited to, “Be Our Guest”!
