Byron Center — West Middle School math teacher Jeff Gdowski had a jolly holiday this summer as a cast member in Van Singel Fine Arts Center’s production of “Mary Poppins.”
He plays several parts in the show, mainly as Neleus the statue in the park and a chimney sweep during the well-known dance number “Step In Time.” The show opens at 7 p.m. tonight at Van Singel Fine Arts Center. Other performances are Friday, Aug. 16 at 7 p.m.; and at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 17. Tickets can be purchased at the box office or online.
Gdowski said he practiced his timing and memorization skills to nail multiple characters in several scenes of the show.
“The correlation between musicians and mathematicians is proven,” he said. “(A musical) is like math; it doesn’t work if you don’t get all of it to work together.”
Gdowski acted in his first musical as a high school senior and despite pursuing math as a career, said he never stopped searching for avenues back to the stage.
“It’s worth it to come back to the theater,” he said. “I’ve been involved in music all my life and I’ve really enjoyed the family we’ve created in (Byron Center) community theater.”
Several seasoned adult cast members, including Gdowski, returned from last summer’s performance of “The Sound of Music” to serve as teachers and mentors to the younger students, some of whom were their own children.
“Our community theater program is truly special in the way it brings families together onstage, making our production even more magical,” said Michelle Wagner, “Mary Poppins” director and Van Singel managing director.
The intergenerational cast and crew includes family units of two, three and even four people from the same household on stage together, including twelve parent-child groups and five sibling duos and trios.
The correlation between musicians and mathematicians is proven. (A musical) is like math; it doesn’t work if you don’t get all of it to work together.
— Jeff Gdowski, West Middle School math teacher
Gdowski’s own twin daughters, Claire and Alexa, are making their stage debut as honeybees. Several of his current and former students are also in the cast, he said.
“He taught me to flip and I taught him geometry,” Gdowski said about former student Paul Kimball, who plays “Bert.”
The Byron Center staff-studded cast also features music teachers Mia Van Erp from Countryside Elementary in the lead role of Mary Poppins, and Meghan Furney from Marshall Elementary.
“It’s been wonderful, and an awesome way to be a part of the community other than being ‘Ms. Furney, the music teacher,’” she said.
As a music teacher, Furney said it is her job to introduce students to all kinds of music, including musical theater. This fall, she’ll have the experience of her first BC community show to share with her students.
“I love how magical it is, all the different people coming together for the same outcome,” Furney said. “I don’t always get the chance to meet parents and get to know families during the school year.”
Read more from Byron Center:
• School musical offers students new experiences
• The stage is where her heart is
