No sibling rivalry in Rising Star production of 'Millie'

The story of a young woman who finds difficulty on the road to marrying her wealthy boss for his money will soon grace the Rising Star Theatreworks stage, as the production company gears up for its summer production of "Thoroughly Modern Millie."

Based on the 1967 musical film of the same title, the production will take place this weekend at West Aurora High School Theatre, at 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, and 2 p.m. on Sunday.

Three pairs of siblings have all found roles in the production, a feat that "just happened," according to director Jeanne O'Donnell.

"We do have siblings in our show periodically. Usually one of them is cast in a show and they really enjoy it, and their brother or sister might notice how much fun they had for the production and then decide to come out for our next productions' auditions," she said. "The kids are all talented, and they all have something going on for them, which is even greater."

Ryan Barabasz, 22, of Geneva, plays Ching Ho, a Chinese henchman who falls in love with Miss Dorothy Brown, Millie Dillmount's best friend. His sister Kelly will play Millie.

Ryan said he and his sister have performed in shows together before, but this time are both featured in main roles, which is a new experience for the two.

He said working alongside his talented sister has not been as difficult as one may think.

"She and I have always had a good relationship. If we ever have a problem at home, we usually leave it there when we get to rehearsals, and we help each other out as much as we can," he said.

For his role, Ryan led a dual responsibility: to one, learn the lines for the production and two, to learn the lines in Mandarin. He said he tried to learn the language on his own, but the task turned to be more impossible than he had hoped.

Cue his sister, who came to the rescue with a friend, native to China, who taught them how to say each line phonetically.

"The way we had it and the way she taught us how to say it was nowhere close to matching one another. I've had to learn lines before, but to learn lines and then in Mandarin, it was a whole new world," he said.

Erin Kofron, 18, of Batavia, plays Alice, one of Millie's friends. She said she and her brother Stuart, who is in the ensemble, have no sibling rivalry when it comes to being cast for speaking and non-speaking roles.

"In some numbers, he has bigger dance parts than I do, and he's always very supportive whenever I try to do something. There's no difference in our relationship because I have say 10 more lines than he does, he'll never be more mad or harder on me because of our different feats," she said.

In addition to the productions, O'Donnell said the last night of dress rehearsal is dedicated to a special performance for individuals with special needs, a practice that has been done in years previous.

Bonnie Davidson of Streamwood has attended previous productions of "Annie," "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat," and "42nd Street" with her daughter Ashley, 24, who has cerebral palsy.

She said the experiences she and her daughter have taken from previous productions have been wonderful, and looks forward to this year's production even more.

"My daughter is really comfortable with whatever production she goes to. She even sometimes goes up after the show is over and shakes the actors' hands, and tries to get their autograph. I don't think we've ever been to a play that she hasn't loved," Davidson said.

<p class="factboxheadblack">If you go </p>

<p class="News">What: Rising Star Theatreworks' production of "Thoroughly Modern Millie"</p>

<p class="News">When: 7 p.m. today, June 24, final dress rehearsal free to audience members with special needs and their families. Regular performances set for 7:30 p.m. Friday, June 25 and Saturday, June 26; 2 p.m. Sunday, June 27</p>

<p class="News">Where: West Aurora High School, 1201 W. New York St., Aurora</p>

<p class="News">Tickets: $15 for adults and $12 for students, seniors and children; for free tickets to tonight's performance for special needs audiences, call Nancy Hansen at (630) 845-9165 or e-mail HansConsulting@aol.com.</p>

<p class="News">Details: risingstartheatre.org</p>