With an “evil” Queen out to ruin her son’s wedding, a prince looking for “the one”, and a princess who swims the moat,Notre Dame Preparatory School’s production of Once Upon a Mattress will keep you laughing while you root for the happiness of its unusual characters.

Once Upon a Mattress is a comedic musical adaption of Hans Christian Andersen’s The Princess and the Pea.Set in a medieval kingdom ruled by Queen Aggravain and mute King Sextimus ,the musical tells the tale of how the Queen’s son, Prince Dauntless has been searching for a wife but his mother creates tests that his suitors can’t pass.The rest of the kingdom cannot marry until Dauntless has wed so Sir Harry brings a new princess named Fred to  pass the test so that he may marry Lady Larken.

Notre Dame Prep’s production of Once Upon a Mattress never had a dull moment.The cast was animated and energetic.They put on a spirited performance.The show was filled with many lovely voices, lively dancing, and eccentricity.The audience was kept grinning through the whole production.

The characters of Princess Winnifred, played by Lydia Spurrier, and Prince Dauntless, played by Mark Sulcoloski, both had notable performances but not simply because they were the main characters.The characters were good individually but were even better together.Their chemistry was obvious and charming.The boisterous Fred (Lydia Spurrier), an uncouth girl, won the adoration of both the court and the audience even as she animatedly tried to win the wide-eyed childlike prince.

The cast of Once Upon a Mattress was charismatic and playful. They constantly brought smiles to the faces of the audience.The trio of the ministrel (Sam Jenkins), the Jester (Maddie Laudeman), and the mute King Sextimus (Colton Harris) danced and sang their way into our hearts. Colton Harris as King Sextimus met the challenge of playing a silent character nicely having no problem making the audience laugh in scenes such as “Man to Man Talk” where his skills as a pantomime were highlighted  as he pranced around the stage in an effort to communicate to the oblivious Dauntless the “birds and the bees,” a talk which he obviously preferred not to have.

In this production of Once Upon a Mattress one thing that stood out was the use of lighting to enhance the musical. The light enhanced the musical as a whole, creating the atmosphere of many scenes such as when the stage was flooded with red and the rage of the Queen was made all the more intimidating.

The Notre Dame Preparatory School’s production of Once Upon a Mattress was  playful and whimsical.The characters will not easily be forgotten.

by Michelle Kendig of Old Mill