Melody Carsey, left, a sophomore at Schuylkill Haven Area High School, plays Elle Woods in her school's production of "Legally Blonde: The Musical." McKenna Cavenas, right, a senior at Mahanoy Area High School, plays Elle Woods in her school's production of "Legally Blonde: The Musical." PHOTOS BY JACQUELINE DORMER
Originally published on April 7, 2022.
It’s Monday evening, and the Mahanoy Area Junior-Senior High School auditorium has transformed into the pink-and-white Delta Nu sorority house from “Legally Blonde: The Musical” - except for the study hall sign that forbids pushing, hitting, kicking and “mom jokes.” Senior Class President McKenna Cavenas, who stars as Elle Woods, must change from her track uniform into a blonde wig and heels. Finding that wig for Cavenas, a brunette, wasn’t easy. Director Dan Nester went to a wig shop in Lehighton and got the last blonde wig available, but it was too short. He ordered a lace front wig from Amazon, and a local hairdresser styled it.
“I was really excited to put it on,” Cavenas said, “seeing me in blonde hair. It helped me get into the Elle Woods role.”
Cavenas in a scene from "Legally Blonde."
That same day, Schuylkill Haven Area High School sophomore Melody Carsey ate pizza and hung out with her co-stars in the Zwerling Auditorium. Carsey plays Elle Woods in Schuylkill Haven’s production of “Legally Blonde,” Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m. Mahanoy Area performs “Legally Blonde” Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m.
Neither school had any idea that they were doing the same show on the same weekend.
“I think we are curious as to how (Schuylkill Haven) would do it,” said Mahanoy Area assistant director Maggie Kergick. “There are places where we had to decide how we are gonna do it, and we kind of strayed from the version we have watched.”
“It’s friendly competition,” said Carsen, who has friends at Mahanoy Area and is glad that they can share the experience. She and her friend Jaxil Tovar, a Mahanoy Area senior who plays Professor Callahan, talk about the two shows. He hopes he can make it to Sunday’s matinee at Schuylkill Haven.
“It’s nice knowing that I get to see both perspectives,” he said. “What McKenna sees as Elle Woods here, versus what Melody sees as Elle Woods over at Schuylkill Haven.”
Carsen, a natural blonde, sees similarities between Elle and herself.
“We both take life one day at a time,” she said, “we’re both very excited and take each day as it comes.”
That was how she approached the musical.
“I’m just kind of happy to be here,” she said, “and wherever I land, I land. I’m just grateful to be here.”
To her friends’ shock, she still has not seen the 2001 Reese Witherspoon film that inspired the musical.
Carsey in a scene from "Legally Blonde."
Cavenas “fell in love with” Elle when she saw a video of the musical on YouTube.
“She goes from this blonde, to a strong, independent woman,” Cavenas said. “Once she got into Harvard, she got to find this passion, and figure out who she really was. I kind of share that with her, that she finds her passion and works toward it.”
While Elle is “definitely more preppy” than she is, Cavenas loves playing the character. Like Elle, Cavenas wants to be valedictorian.
Nester and Schuylkill Haven director Gloria Evert chose “Legally Blonde” for the same reasons - it was modern, upbeat and female-focused. When he found out that Schuylkill Haven was also doing “Legally Blonde,” Nester was confident that it was the right choice.
“This is all about Elle,” said Evert, who has known Melody since she was in elementary school. “I knew we had Melody, and I knew we had some talent right there. We fit it around her. I don’t pick a show until I know who is going to be doing it. I want a sure thing.”
“Legally Blonde: The Musical” features two canine co-stars; Elle’s chihuahua Bruiser, and Paulette’s dog Rufus. At Schuylkill Haven, both animals are stuffed toys. Evert said that the stage is “a cruel place” for an untrained dog.
At Mahanoy Area, Porkchop, the school’s emotional support dog, will play Rufus. Baby, Kergick’s pet Yorkie, will play Bruiser.
“She recently got a haircut so she looks like a Chihuahua,” Kergick said. “It’s definitely been a challenge. My dog was very excited, she loves people, she didn’t want to be held. She wanted to be down and run around.”
“Baby works good as a chihuahua,” Nester said.
“Baby was great,” Cavenas said. “She was super excited and I love dogs. I got to have my actual Bruiser with me.”
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