Top performing talents from around Illinois give life to 'Urinetown'

The nation's largest high school theater festival opens Friday on the campus of Illinois State University, and with it some of the brightest stars from the Northwest suburbs take flight.

A total of 4,000 high school students from across the state will converge on the campus for the 35th annual festival, which features a variety of workshops, plays and showcase productions for students to absorb.

Among them are 12 plays chosen to be performed at the festival. They include Buffalo Grove High School's "Antigone," Rolling Meadows High School's "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)," and Maine West High School's "Brush Yourself Off and Move On," directed by senior Angel Parrilli.

A highlight of the weekend is the annual All-State Production, which this year features the Tony Award-winning musical, "Urinetown."

Fremd High School English teacher and theater sponsor, Judy Klingner, directs the show, and with her production team selected 70 students for the company after rigorous auditions last summer.

Local talent includes Drew Klingner, Judy's son, from Fremd, Jonathan Stevens from Maine South and Brooke Papritz from Glenbrook North as principals in the show.

Palatine High School student Ann Delany performs in the chorus and as dance captain. Hoffman Estates High School students Mary Keenan and Katy Kosiek are in the crew, while Jordan Habel plays saxophone in the pit orchestra.

Maine East also has three students involved: Dylan Guzman in the chorus, and Selma Muminovic and Shivangi Patel in the crew.

"I admit, I was a little uncomfortable with the title," Judy Klingner said, "but within the first three minutes they make fun of it in the show, and it takes off from there."

The musical's name reflects a severe water shortage in the show's fictional setting, caused by a 20-year drought that leads to a government-enforced ban on private toilets. Written by Mark Hollmann and Greg Kotis, the irreverent satire has implications even today, Klingner suggests.

"The music is terrific and the story is funny, but with our natural resources dwindling," she says, "it's something we should be thinking about."

Klingner worked with a production team that included Michael Karasch from Fremd as technical director, Steve Sivak from Palatine High School as music director, and Mark Begovich from Maine West as executive producer.

Karen Hall from Maine East High School is this year's festival executive director.

Working together, they pulled the show together after only five weekend rehearsals held at Maine East, and more intensive run-throughs this week. What normally would take nine weeks at a high school, Klingner estimates this show came together after a total of 17 rehearsals.

"It's a cast of standouts; these are the best of the best," she says. "Which is the only way we could have put it together so quickly."

From his vantage point as executive producer, Begovich, credits Klingner with bringing these young actors to new heights.

"There is something infectious in these rehearsals," Begovich says. "These are truly top students at their home schools, and here, under Judy's direction, they challenge each other to keep growing. It is truly magical to watch."