The auditoriums of the Freehold Regional High School District’s six schools are alive with the sound of musicals. Upcoming performances include the following:
• Manalapan High School presents “The Wizard of Oz.” Young Dorothy Gale is swept away by a tornado from her Kansas farm to the magical land of Oz. There, she encounters a host of whimsical characters and things magical to behold. To find her way home, she must journey along the Yellow Brick Road to see the mysterious and all-powerful Wizard in Emerald City.
Along the way, she makes new friends, but must also brave many dangers, including the Wicked Witch of the West. To make it home safely, Dorothy must learn an important lesson: there’s no place like home.
Performances will be held on Feb. 28, March 1 and March 2 at 6:30 p.m. A matinee will be held on March 2 at 2 p.m. Tickets are available at www.Manalapan.Booktix.com or at the door. Adults: $7 online, $10 at the door; students, seniors and children: $5 online, $7 at the door. There will be a meet and greet ($5) after the 2 p.m. show on March 2.
• Howell High School presents “The Drowsy Chaperone.” When wealthy widow Mrs. Tottenham hosts the wedding of the year, she gets a lot more than a write-up in the society pages: Janet Van de Graaff, the glittering starlet of “Feldzieg’s Follies,” is leaving the stage for love, a turn of events which horrifies the angry and anxious Mr. Feldzieg, whose chief investor has sent two gangsters disguised as pastry chefs to make sure he stops the wedding.
Hiring Aldolpho to woo the bride away from the groom is unsuccessful, as
Janet’s chaperone gets herself mistaken for the bride and seduced in Janet’s place.
Performances will be held on March 1-2 and March 8-9 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $15.
• Freehold Township High School presents “Hello, Dolly!” Matchmaker Dolly Levi is a widow, a matchmaker and also a professional meddler, but everything changes when she decides that the next match she needs to make is to find someone for herself.
Set in New York City at the turn of the 20th century, “Hello, Dolly!” is boisterous and charming from start to finish. Performances will be held March 15-16 at 7 p.m. Matinee performances will be held on March 16-17 at 1 p.m. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students/seniors.
• Colts Neck High School presents “Big Fish.” Edward Bloom has lived a full and fantastical life, populated by witches, giants and mermaids, marked by true love that stops time in its tracks and framed by heroics that push the limits of believability.
His adult son, Will, is no longer amused by his father’s fantastical tales, insisting on a rational rather than a fantastical account of one’s life. When Edward’s health declines and Will learns that he and his wife, Josephine, will have a son of their own, Will decides to find out his father’s “true” life story, once and for all.
Performances will be held on March 29, April 5-6 at 7 p.m. There will be a matinee performance at 2 p.m. March 30. Tickets are $10 and may be purchased in advance at https://cnhsnj.booktix.com/ or at the door.
• Freehold High School presents “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.” An eclectic group of sixth-graders arrives at the 25th annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, each eager to win for very different reasons.
In hilarious, touching and catchy songs, each speller reveals his or her hopes, struggles and passions as they make their way through the competition. Performances will be held on March 29-30 at 7 p.m. A matinee performance will be held at 1 p.m. March 30.
• Marlboro High School presents “The Little Mermaid.” Beautiful mermaid Ariel should be a happy girl – she lives in an enchanted undersea country, her father is a king and she has the most beautiful singing voice.
But she is a passionate, headstrong teenager and wants what she cannot have – to live on land. When she falls in love with a handsome human prince, Ariel is more determined than ever to gain a pair of legs.
Her only option is to defy her furious father and bargain with Ursula the Sea Witch, giving her voice as the price of entry onto dry land. With the help of Flounder the fish, Scuttle the seagull and Sebastian the crab, Ariel must wordlessly gain Prince Eric’s love within three days or lose her soul to the ambitious witch.
Performances will be held on March 29 at 7 p.m. and March 30-31 at 2 p.m.
