BHS Presents: Songs for a New World

Maddie Cooper is a senior at Batavia High School, and is thrilled to be a part of the fourth and final musical of her high school theater career! Her previous shows include The Spongebob Musical, 42nd Street, and Mean Girls. She is so grateful for all the friends and memories she has made in the past four years, and is proud of all the hard work everyone put into the show. She’d like to thank the show’s directors and choreographer, along with everyone in the cast and crew for bringing it to life. She hopes you enjoy the show!

Kate Streepey is a senior at Batavia High School. This is her 11th, and final, show at BHS. She would like to thank everyone who has supported her throughout the past 4 years, and hopes everyone enjoys the show.

Mac Leathers is a senior in high school and is very excited to be in this show! This is Mac’s last show with BHS and they are so grateful to have had this chance to perform. They would like to thank their friends, director, and family for making these last four years a great experience. Finally, they would like to thank the audience for coming to see the show and hope that you enjoy it!

Sarah Anderson is a senior at BHS, and she has always loved the arts, particularly singing and dancing. She’s thrilled to finally be part of her first musical, though she wishes she had joined sooner! This experience has been eye-opening, and she feels grateful for the talented and friendly cast and crew who have welcomed her. Sarah also wants to thank her parents for their unwavering support; she knows she wouldn’t be here without them. She hopes you enjoy the show!

Lia Woods (aunt beast) Lia is a sophomore at Batavia High School and is very excited to part of this year’s play. Her favorite past show has been Heathers (Heather McNamara). She is also a member of the drama club, Swingsingers and Chromatics. Her other hobbies include drawing, reading, and hanging out with her friends. She would like to thank her family for coming to every show and always supporting her, as well as the amazing directors and cast of A Wrinkle in Time.

Lane Is a Junior and Is glad to be a part of “A Wrinkle In Time”. His past shows include Songs For A New World, The Monster: A Frankenstein Tale, And Mean Girls. This is his Sixth show with the BHS Drama Program, and is happy to make an Impact on Drama Program and BHS. he’d like to dedicate his performance to his supporters and hope you enjoy the show!

This is Charlotte’s ninth show here at BHS and she is so excited to share this unique and magical show with you! She’d like to thank the cast, crew, STAGE, and the many other wonderful people who helped make this show amazing. She hopes you love watching A Wrinkle In Time just as much as she’s loved being in it!!!!

Sama Taha is in the tenth grade and attends Batavia High School. This is her fifteenth production of all time, but her first backstage! She is elated to be part of Batavia’s crew for A Wrinkle in Time. She would like to thank the awesome cast and crew for making this show possible.

Caroline Katich is a freshman and this is her third show at the high school. Other shows she’s performed in include She Kills Monsters, Madagascar Jr, The Lightning Thief, Songs for a New World, and Odd Couple. Caroline can’t wait to continue doing shows at the high school!

Joy Mamminga is a Sophomore at BHS, and this is her fourth high school school production! She is also apart of But Seriously Folks Improv troupe, and Swingsingers. She would like to thank her amazing family for supporting her through everything, her fabulous directors for all the dedication they have put into the show, her amazing friends for always having her back, and her wonderful cast mates for making the show awesome! She hopes you enjoy the show as much as she does!

Arianna is a sophomore at BHS, this is her first musical at the high school. She hopes you enjoy the show.

Gwen Elftmann(Ensemble): Gwen is a freshman at BHS and is so excited to be in A Wrinkle in Time! She has been in shows such as Songs for A New World, Shrek Jr., The Lightning Thief Jr., A Little Mermaid Jr., A Wizard of Oz Jr., Aladdin Jr., and more! She is so thankful to the directors and BHS for making this show possible! She is also thankful to her friends and family for supporting her along the way!

Wyatt Berryhill, a junior at BHS, is excited to perform in A Wrinkle in Time. He began his theater journey in the fourth grade and has since been involved in Batavia Theater and Stage Works in Geneva. Wyatt’s roles include Mary Poppins (Neleus), Annie (Daddy Warbucks), High School Musical (Coach Bolton), Mean Girls (Damian), and songs for a new world. In addition to acting, Wyatt is a producer and songwriter under the alias “Wyatt HilloBerries” and is well-known around school for his music. He would like to thank his mom, Geneva theater friends, and everyone who supports his music.

Grace Elftmann is a junior at Batavia High School. This is her second production at BHS, but more than her tenth production overall! Grace would like to thank the talented and kind cast and crew of The Odd Couple for this experience. She also would like to thank her family, (Aimee, Eric, and Gwen) for all their support, and say that she loves them very much!

This is Julia’s 10th and final production at Batavia High School! While she is sad to see it come to an end, she’s so grateful to be ending with A Wrinkle In Time. She would like to thank Mr. Casburn, STAGE, and the stage managers for making this production come to life, as well as her family and friends for their continued support.

Sarrinah Iqbal is thrilled to be working behind the scenes for this year’s spring play, A Wrinkle in Time! She is a sophomore in high school with this being her third show as Props Master. She has previously worked with crew on shows such as Mean Girls and Songs for a New World. She can’t wait for you to come and see the show!

Tommy Gray is a guitarist currently taking residence in Batavia, Illinois. He is a prolific jazz and jazz fusion guitarist, however he also dabbles in the occasional thrash metal song. Some of his favorite artists include Casiopea, Jeff Buckley, and Ghost, Masayoshi Takanaka, and Julian Lage. He has been playing guitar “seriously” for about 4+ years, and currently plans to attend a college for music education or performance, with an emphasis on jazz guitar.

Jackson Jonak is a freshman at BHS, and this is his first time playing an instrument for a musical. He has a love for musical theater and piano, and found the best of both worlds by joining the pit! He hopes you enjoy the production!

Jonah Tesdall is excited to play piano for the musical. This is his second year doing the musical, and will hopefully continue in years to come. He has been playing piano since he was 7 and has been looking for more ways to get involved with playing piano at the school. He would like to thank his friends and family for being supportive with his musical endeavors, and thank all of my band and music teachers for helping me on this journey.

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

Sophia Jech is a senior at Batavia High School. She is so excited to play Meg and act in her 10th show at the high school. Sophia has loved getting to perform with the other actors and help from crew and wants to thank all of the wonderful students , parents, and other people who make these shows happen. She hopes you enjoy the show!

Peter Barsch teaches all curricular and co-curricular choirs at Batavia High School. Mean Girls marks his 20th show as Music Director. In addition to the last nine years of BHS shows, he has worked on Les Miserables, Ragtime, Beauty and the Beast, Into the Woods, The Producers, and more. Mr. Barsch holds a Master’s Degree in Music Education from NIU and two Bachelor’s Degrees from the Honors Program at Loyola University Chicago. Mr. Barsch has been listed in “Who’s Who among America’s Teachers” and was a Quarter-Finalist for the Grammy “Music Educator of the Year” Award. Mr. Barsch and his wife, Annie, live in Batavia with their three children.

Jayden is very excited about his last show at the high school. He is very proud to be an ensemble member, as the ensemble is what makes this show what it is. He thanks his friends and family and hopes the show changes you in a good way!

Kyle Donahue is thrilled to be working with the great cast and artistic team of songs for a new world! He has loved choreographing previous BHS productions of Mean Girls, 42^nd Street, Spongebob, Theory of Relativity, Mamma Mia, Chicago, and Cats!  He has choreographed and performed around the world on regional theatre, theme park and cruise ship stages. Some choreography credits include Pippin, Legally Blonde, Grease, All Shook Up, Oklahoma!, and Forever Plaid.  In the Chicagoland area, Kyle has been seen on stage at Drury Lane Theatre Oakbrook, Steel Beam Theatre, Fox Valley Ballet, and New American Theatre, and has choreographed for Buffalo Theatre Ensemble, North Riverside Players, Fox Valley Repertory, Rockford University, and College of DuPage. He serves as the Assistant Superintendent of Recreation at the Geneva Park District, and resides locally with his beautiful wife Julie and their four kiddos Lulu, Lincoln, Finn and River. He sends a big thank you to Dominic for this opportunity and the cast and artistic team for their hard work and dedication!