This year, Vallivue High School’s musical performance of “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang” will run from March 6-9. Based on the 1968 movie starring Dick Van Dyke, “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang” follows the story of Caractacus Potts, his two kids, and Truly Scrumptious as Baron and Baroness Bomburst try to steal the family car. It is set in England, but the family is taken on an adventure to Vulgaria to rescue Grandpa Potts from the Baron and Baroness.
Caractacus Potts is a poor, down-on-his-luck inventor and single father struggling to make a living by selling his inventions. He lives with his kids, Jeremy and Jemima, as well as Grandpa Potts. They live a humble and honest life, Caractacus doing what he can to keep his family afloat. Emmett Engstrom, a junior, has been chosen to play this role.
Truly Scrumptious, played by junior Alaina Palmer, is the daughter of a candymaker. She stumbles upon the Potts family by chance but quickly gets dragged into their adventures when the family falls in love with her. Palmer is a wonderful actress to play Truly, having just the right look and voice for her.
Baron Bomburst, played by junior Paul Orton, is one of the main antagonists, trying to steal Chitty Chitty Bang Bang from the Potts family. He is a little childish and expects his wife to give him everything that he wants, and she very much does.
Baroness Bomburst, typically called The Baroness, is played by sophomore Jocelyn Warr. She is a comedically cringey wife who yearns for love and affection from her husband, constantly whining and complaining when she doesn’t get any. Though she dotes on The Baron, he barely reciprocates any of her attention.
Boris (senior John Orton) and Goran (senior Parker Carruth) are two Vulgarian spies, trusted and employed by the Baron and Baroness to find out where the Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is and steal it for them. They are comedic characters that appear in quite a few scenes, and the chemistry between Orton and Carruth only makes the characters ten times better.
Freshman Maycee Kimball and sophomore John Aydelotte were cast as Jemima and Jeremy Potts respectively, being good-hearted and kind children. Though they have been through many struggles in life, their family is held together by their optimism and Caractacus’ strong will.
Sophomore Rylie Wilson was cast as the Childcatcher, being the only main character that has no solo songs. The Childcatcher is hired to rid Vulgaria of all its children, and the second he hears about the appearance of a child, he is sent by the Baron and Baroness to capture them.
Junior Lillia Nielson has taken on the role of choreographing the musical, figuring out the dances for each of the songs, ensemble and otherwise. She has truly put a ton of effort into making sure each dance looks and feels like it should be in that scene. Without all of her efforts, it would have been an even greater struggle to get the show put together.
The play will be shown from March 6-9 in the VHS auditorium. Doors open at 7 p.m. and tickets will be sold for $5 at the door. It is family-friendly so the entire family can come! It will run about two hours with an intermission halfway through.
