Issue 1, Volume 13

Bye Bye Birdie
By Emma Harper
Bright lights, big stage, crowd
applauding. Cast screaming “We
love you Conrad!” Mrs. Miranda
Susie, the director, was very
excited for this production.
“Bye Bye Birdie” is a 1963
production filled with fun,
dancing, singing, 1960s rock and
roll, and some romance. Susie was
in “Bye Bye Birdie” when she was
in high school, which is one of
the main reasons she chose to
stage the production this year.
Sami Magee, an eighth grader,
is playing Kim Macafee, one of
the lead roles. Sami was also in
the sixth and seventh grade play.
“Going into the audition, I
knew I wanted to be Kim
Macafee,” Magee said.
While all the action is
happening on stage, the backstage
crew is putting the show together
with the props, lights, sound,
controlling the curtains, and the
scenes. Mia Anderson, an eighth
grader, has been in crew for all
three years of middle school.
“Eighth grade from last year
carries over to the next year,”
Anderson explains how she got
the role of co-stage manager.
“The crew is important
because we make the show more
realistic,” she says, “the show
would still be awesome but all the
props help.”
Crew helps you learn more
about technology and teamwork.
Kim Macafee (Sami Magee)
and Conrad Birdie (Jacob Young)
Conrad Birdie (Jacob Young) impresses the crowd
and makes them faint.
Rosie (Gabriela Zalam) and Albert (Daniel Schrader-Dobris) are dancing in
the spotlight as the crowd cheers. Photo by: Owen Gastineau
are the two main leads in Bye Bye
Birdie.
“We host 3 auditions and if
we want you to come back and try
out some lead parts you will get a
call back,” Susie said.
Sami Magee did a singing
audition and got a call back to
read a few of Kim Macafee’s lines.
Jacob Young, an eighth
grader, auditioned and sang for
Susie. He got a call back for
Conrad Birdie, the role he tried
out for.
Rehearsals are very hectic
especially during tech week. Tech
week is when students go through
the show with costumes and hair.
Kim Macafee
(Sami Magee)
tries to convince
Rosie (Gabriella
Zalam) to take
her with her when
she leaves.
“I feel like the show is going to be
a great production.” Sami Magee
said.
Everyone in the cast and crew
was very excited for the show.
According to Susie, the cast
did amazing and put on a really
good production. This show is
definitely going down in history.
“We love you Conrad!”
Q&A
We did a short interview with a
sixth grader Maddi Bennett, who has
the role of the Mayor’s Wife (Edna),
about her experience with Bye-Bye
Birdie.
Why did you choose to be
in the play?
“I thought it would be a good
way to make friends and to get
involved.”
How do you audition?
“You prepare a song, then
after school you’re called in and
you sing your song in front of
Mrs. Susie and a few judges.”
BIO Box
Sami MageE
This is Sami's third musical
production at Clay. She performed
as a Siren in Xanadu and
as Tiger Lily in Peter Pan, Jr. She
also performed in recent CYT
production of Shrek, Jr. She is a
member of Best Buddies
and enjoyed being
a member of the
Show Choir last year.
She enjoys spending
time with her friends,
family and dogs. She
would like to thank
Mrs. Susie for always
believing in her and
her biggest fans, her
family!