BHS Presents: 42nd Street

Rachel can’t believe that this is her 4th and final musical at BHS. She is grateful for the time she’s spent over the years with people who have encouraged her to do what she loves. She’s glad you’re here and hopes you enjoy the show as much as she does!

Drew is very excited to play Julian Marsh in this years musical. He has been acting since age 6 and this is his 4th show at the BFAC. He would like to thank the cast, crew, and directors for all their hard work and dedication.

Gemma, a senior, was previously in shows such as I Remember Mama (Christine), Theory of Relativity (Julie), and Animal Farm (Napoleon) at the high school, as well as the play Columbinus (Rebel) at the Albright Theatre. She also studied at Actors Training Center in Wilmette and Piven Theatre Workshop in Evanston.

This being Matthew’s 5th production at BHS, he considers himself somewhat of a seasoned thespian. Not to mention his many appearances in BHS’ most wonderful improv troupe, But Seriously Folks, over the past year and a half. An amalgamation of all of these skills is sure to leave you amazed by the end of this whimsical tale, especially when one considers the expertise of his fellow cast. Silence your damn phones, buckle your seatbelts, and enjoy; it’s a good one.

Clara is a senior at BHS with 10 productions under her belt. She has thoroughly enjoyed the process of creating this show, and hopes that the hard work of the cast and crew will shine through during the performance!

Chloe has taken part in 10 BHS shows prior to Murder, as well as being the school’s improv co-troupe leader. She cares deeply about this program, and is excited to showcase the product of a show’s process that has been different to any she’s been in before — she hopes the mystery intrigues you, provokes thought, and leaves you wanting more! enjoy!

Josue is a senior at BHS and is so excited to share this show with all of you! This is his second show at BHS, but he has always been involved in music through Swingsingers and Chromatics. He is so happy you are here and hopes that you enjoy the show!

Chloe is a junior this year and really looks forward to this years production of 42nd street! She was involved in the pit orchestra for Spongebob last year and now dances in the show this year. She loves to dance and sing and has had so many amazing times during rehearsals. She hopes you enjoy the show and looks forward to bringing 42nd street to life!

Ashlyn is a senior at BHS and is so excited to be apart of Murder on the Rerun! She has been part of all the shows at BHS so far and can’t wait for you all to be drawn into this mystery! She also had an amazing time assistant directing and is so proud of her fellow cast mates! She is so thankful for everyone who came to watch and hopes you enjoy the show!

Abe is super excited for his last musical at BHS, and is grateful to be a part of such an amazing production. He enjoys being very involved in the amazing music and theatre programs here at BHS. Past productions include Mary Poppins, Mamma Mia!, The Theory of Relativity, Animal Farm, and Spongebob the Musical. He is also on the improv troupe But Seriously Folks…, and enjoys being in Chromatics and Swinsingers at BHS. He thanks his family and friends for supporting him in doing something he loves and will cherish for the rest of his life. Enjoy the show!

Erin is a junior at Batavia High School and this is her fourth production at BHS. She is so excited for everyone to see this amazing show and hopes you enjoy!

T.J. is a senior at BHS, and this is his 8th production in the drama program here. He is so excited for you to experience this wonderful show, and would like to thank everyone involved.

This is Miranda’s final show at Batavia High School and she could not be more thrilled that it’s 42nd Street! This show has been beyond memorable and she is extremely grateful to be a part of it. She is unbelievably thankful for all of the incredible moments.

Jayden, a Sophomore, is excited to be in his 4th show at BHS(Animal Farm, Nevermore, Spongebob, and 42nd Street). Even if he’s just a guy who walks across the stage with a rope, he says, “It’s still a great experience, with lots of friends. Enjoy the show!”

This is Eli’s 4th musical and he is so excited to put on a show for everyone! He loves to put on shows! Eli started singing and dancing in middle school and loves this cast for 42nd Street! You are going to love it!

Joey is a Senior at Batavia High School who is nothing short of ecstatic to be a part of his second BFAC production, as well as his second production ever, “Murder on the Rerun!” He hopes to help put on a show that will be fondly remembered by many.

Megan Cooper is a sophomore at batavia highschool and she is so excited to be a part of such an amazing show. She is so proud of this show and so proud of all the people who came together to make it happen. She wants to thank her family for all of their love and support, as well as her directors and choreographers who always push her to do her best. Enjoy the show!

Kaia is thrilled to be making her debut as a student at BHS! She has been a longtime lover of Musical Theater and has been in numerous youth theater in the area. Thanks to the amazing directors, cast, and crew of 42nd Street! Enjoy the show!

Beth is thrilled for her first musical at BHS! Beth is a junior and has been dancing for ten years. She is so happy to be apart of 42nd Street and has made so many great memories along the way. She would like to thank family, friends, and teachers who enouraged her along the way. She hopes you enjoy 42nd Street!

Maddie is a sophomore and is thrilled to be in her second show here at the BFAC. She has loved working on the show and spending time with her castmates. She would like to thank her family for always encouraging her to be her best, and she hopes you enjoy the show!

Sarah Katz is a sophomore at Batavia High School. She has been in a few shows there, including Animal Farm, Nevermore, and was in tech for SpongeBob. She is very happy to be in 42nd Street, and she hopes you enjoy the hard work everyone has put into the show.

This is Hailey Adams first musical. She has been dancing for 14 years. Hailey has enjoyed learning all the dances and watch the dances come together. She is excited to perform the dances for everyone to watch.

Mitch is in his sophomore year at Batavia High School and has done several plays and a musical.  This is Mitch’s 2nd musical. Mitch is super excited for being able to participate in the theater program and having the opportunity to get more experience with acting. He really hopes that you enjoy the show!

Sydney is a Junior here at Batavia and this is her first show ever! She has had such a blast getting to be a part of this production. She has met so many amazingly talented people and can’t wait for you to be wowed by all the hard work we put in. Enjoy the show!

Charlotte is a freshman at BHS, and this is her second show at the high school! She is so excited to be able to perform alongside all of these amazingly talented people and she hopes you love the show as much as she has loved being in it!

This is Sophie’s very first show and she’s so excited to be a part of such a great group of people this year. She is a junior here at Batavia and loves getting to share her love of dance and performing with everyone.

Julia is very excited to be a part of this wonderful production of 42nd Street! This is her third production at BHS, and her second production acting. She is very grateful for the wonderful cast, crew, directors, and parent volunteers and would like to congratulate everybody on a job well done!

This is Alivia’s 4th show at the Batavia Fine Arts Center.  She hopes everyone enjoys the production, she is so thankful to be part of such an amazing cast and crew!

Gianna is a freshman and this is her first show at BHS! She is so excited to share this with you and can’t wait for you to see the show! Gianna has been in productions at the middle school as well as show choir. She hopes that you enjoy the show!!

Mackenzie is a sophomore. She has done four shows with BHS. She is very excited to be in this show and hopes you enjoy it.

Sophia is very excited to be a part of her 5th show at Batavia High School. It is her second show this year as a sophomore. She hopes you enjoy the mystery and humor of this play. 

Ravyn is so thrilled to be a part of this show! She loves the script and her character very much. Ravyn feels very privileged to be able to be in a show with a small cast where she can explore new ideas with her acting and create closer friendships to her fellow cast members. She hopes you enjoy the shows!

This is Kate’s fourth show and second musical at BHS. She is so excited for everyone to see 42nd street and would like to thank everyone who worked so hard for it to be possible. Enjoy the show!

Lauren is a Sophomore and this is her first year being a part of shows at Batavia. She loves all the new experiences that come and seeing how shows are put together. She hopes you enjoy Murder on the Rerun!

This is Gianna Konrad’s first time partaking in crew. She is extremely excited to be a part of this production. She hopes you enjoy the show!

Lucy is a freshman and this is her first production at Batavia High School. She has been involved in the performing arts for 9 years. Enjoy the show!!

Mimi is a freshman and this is her first production at BHS.  She is excited to be part of the crew and proud of all the hard work everyone has put into the show.

Senithi is a freshman in the class of 2026. She is so excited for the show and she hopes you enjoy the show as much as she enjoyed being a part of it! She’s so happy to be making the magic happen!

Naomi Gustin is a sophomore at BHS. This is her third time participating in crew here. Previously she’s been involved with productions at RMS, The Albright Theatre, and Vero Voce. The cast, directors, and crew have put so much effort into this show. Enjoy!

Lexie is excited for the show! This is her 4th production at BHS and 3rd as a crew member. She has been involved in both community theatre as well as school shows since she was in third grade. She hopes that everyone enjoys the show!

This is Lydia’s first time doing crew for a show. She is very excited to be here and hopes that everybody enjoys the show!

Ronni is a Senior here at BHS and is so excited to be apart 42nd street. This is Ronni’s second year doing crew but has been in many other performances on the stage as well. Enjoy the show!

Tatjana is a junior and is very excited to be props master this year! She has been in numerous shows appearing on stage and behind the scenes. She is excited for you to see Murder on the Rerun and knows you will enjoy.

Alia is a freshman and this is her first performance at BHS. She’s been wanting to be a part of performing arts for years. Enjoy the show!!

This is Haley’s first year on stage crew and being involved at the BFAC. She is so excited to be able to help put on such amazing productions! She really hopes you enjoy the show!

Morgan is a senior in the Batavia Music Program and this is her first time performing in a pit orchestra. She plays a variety of instruments, but has simplified it to three for this show. She would like to thank her big brother for inspiring her to take this leap.

This is Quentin’s first year at BHS and first musical production in the BFAC.

Abby is so excited to be a part of this production! This is her first production as a pit member at BHS. She plays clarinet and has been in band for many years. Shes so proud of how hard every member of this production has worked and hopes you enjoy the show.

Michael has played trumpet for 7 years, participating in several music extracurriculars at Batavia High School.

Thomas Hibbeler is very excited to be playing in the pit orchestra in his first show at BHS. During school, Thomas plays French horn in band and sings bass in choir. He is thankful for everyone who made this show possible, and he really hopes you enjoy the show!

Natalie’s primary instrument is clarinet, but she learned alto sax just for this musical. She is drum major in marching band and loves helping out in the music programs.

Emilie is a clarinet and tenor sax player for the musical and will be doing it for her second year. She is a marching band leader and strives to continue improving as a musician.

KJ is a sophomore and this is his second year playing in the pit. He has been in music since fifth grade and is also involved in orchestra, jazz band, and marching band. He hopes you enjoy this years production of 42nd Street!

Hello there, I’m Tommy. I like jazz music and punk and I am really excited to do pit again for the musical. I play guitar (Known as guitar guy) and I’m looking forward to all sorts of musical shenanigans.

Emma Hirschauer

Riley has been an active member of different musical groups through all 5 years that he has been involved with BHS, namely concert band, jazz ensemble, and marching band. This is his second musical, having played in the SpongeBob pit last year, and is ecstatic to play in the pit orchestra again for 42nd Street.

Ariana Venecia

Kera Kennaugh is a junior at Batavia High School. She has participated as an actor in numerous theatrical productions but after learning trombone in 2020 she has now switched to the pit. Kera is very excited to play such fun music and work with the rest of the pit and actors to produce a great show.

Alan is a 2017 alum from BHS and a recent graduate from Elmhurst University. During his studies he had the opportunity to study with local legends such as Doug Beach, Mark Colby, Tom Garling, and many more. He teaches and performs around the Chicagoland area primarily in the jazz idiom.

Ryan is a junior and this is his 3rd acting performance at the BFAC. He loves doing theatre in both respective parts cast and crew. He thanks all the people responsible for making this show so great. Ryan hopes you enjoy Murder on the Rerun!

Lily is so thrilled and grateful to be part of such an amazing production team! As a junior at BHS, she is a part of Chamber Singers, Wind Symphony, and Chromatics. 42nd Street is her fifth production at BHS and her second as the Student Music Director. She is so thankful for her family and friends as well as Mr. Barsch and Mr. Cattero for supporting her!

Dominic Is a Batavia native, graduating from BHS in 1999, at which point he attended Illinois Wesleyan University, where he earned a BFA in Theatre Arts. Following a short stint as a freelance director, he settled in Quincy Illinois at Quincy Community Theatre and served as their Director of Student Theatre and Head of Education from 2003-2005 at which time he transitioned to the position of CEO and Managing Artistic Director from 2005 – January of 2011. Dominic has also been appointed and served a three-year term with the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency, and served as an adjunct professor of Theatre Arts and Acting with Hannibal-LaGrange University from 2008 to 2010. A Theatrical Dominic met his wife Miranda on stage in Grease and they have four children, Brayden, Delaney, Mirabella, and Bianca.

Directing Credits Include: The Sound of Music, Urinetown, The Producers, Little Shop of Horrors (twice), Miracle on 34th Street, Steel Magnolias, Jesus Christ Superstar, On Golden Pond, The Graduate, Chicago, Little Brother, Lucky Stiff, Forever Plaid, Footloose, The Importance of Being Earnest, All Shook Up, Jake’s Women, Everybody, Death of a Salesman, Lost in Yonkers, Shrek, Beauty and the Beast, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, I Never Saw Another Butterfly, Dear Edwina, The Theory of Relativity, 9 to 5 The Musical, Arsenic and Old Lace, You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown, Bridge to Terabithia, I Do! I Do! and many more. He is also the founding Director and coach for But Seriously, Folks… improv troupe founded in 2003.

Awards & Reccognition
* West Central Illinois 20 Under 40 recipient
* Individual Artist recipient for Wes Central Illinois?SouthEastern Iowa/North Eastern Missouri
* Arts Educator of the year – 2009
* Enid Ireland Award
* Batavia/Geneva/St. Charles 30 Under 30 recipient
* Batavia Hall of Honor

Peter Barsch is excited to help bring 42nd Street to life with this talented and hardworking team. He has been the Music Director for 19 shows, including Les Miserables, Chicago, Ragtime, and many more. He holds a Master’s Degree in Choral Music Education from NIU and two Bachelor’s Degrees from the Honors Program at Loyola University Chicago.
Special thanks to his supportive and patient wife Annie and his three wonderful kids through these long hours!

This is Heather’s 14th production at Batavia High School. Heather is a graduate of West Aurora High School and Illinois State University. By day, she can be found working at Marklund Day School where she helps make everyday life possible for students with mild to complex disabilities, including autism. By night, she can be found at one of the local theatres. She shares her theatre talents with numerous productions in the area throughout the year. If you can’t find her in either of those places, then she’s probably at home with her cat, Smudge.