RVC's SSHS relives Roaring ’20s with “Thoroughly Modern Millie”

Posted Friday, May 12, 2017 10:42 am

There was plenty of dancing, singing, laughter and fun during South Side High School’s production of “Thoroughly Modern Millie” from April 27-29.

Courtesy Rockville Centre School District

Millie Dillmont (Rita Gentile) was attracted to her Sincere Trust boss Trevor Graydon (Alex Johnson).

Courtesy Rockville Centre School District

Bun Foo (Brandon Astor), left, and Ching Ho (Drew Beatty), right, worked for the sinister Mrs. Meers (Ailish Egan) in hopes of earning enough money to bring their mother from Hong Kong to the United States.

Courtesy Rockville Centre School District

The penniless Jimmy Smith (Connor Coniglio) and Dillmont share a moment together.

Courtesy Rockville Centre School District

The girls flock to catch the latest news.

Courtesy Rockville Centre School District

By Brian Kacharaba

Delish! Terrif!

Those were some of the words that could easily describe South Side High School’s highly-successful interpretation of “Thoroughly Modern Millie” at the school’s auditorium from April 27-29.

The show was based off the six-time Tony Award winning Broadway play and 1967 Academy Award-winning film starring Julie Andrews, Mary Tyler Moore and Carol Channing. The show took audience members back to the Jazz Age in New York City, when women were bobbing their hair, raising their hemlines, entering the workforce and rewriting the rules of love.

It's 1922 and Millie Dillmount (Rita Gentile) has just arrived in New York City after having lived in Salina, Kansas her whole life. She wants a fresh start and plans to marry her boss — but she just has to find a job first.

Along the way, she meets the penniless Jimmy Smith (Connor Coniglio), and Miss Dorothy Brown (Melissa Aliotta), an aspiring actress from California. Millie finally snags a job at Sincere Trust and sets off to woo her new boss, Trevor Graydon (Alex Johnson), but her plan goes awry when everyone starts falling in love with the wrong person.

The cast was directed by Pamela Seiderman under the musical direction of Doreen Fryling and assistant Tommy Buzzi. The crew was led by Russ Reid and included stage managers Hannah O'Connor, Isabel Logios, and Stephanie Rhodes, and a lively pit orchestra that was conducted by Nicholas Catino.