Head Over Heels
May 26 - 28, 2023
4 Performances Only
Songs by The Go-Go’s
Based on ‘The Arcadia’ by Sir Philip Sidney
Conceived and Original Book by Jeff Whitty
Adapted by James Magruder
Conceived and Original Book by Jeff Whitty
Adapted by James Magruder
WE GOT THE BEAT! HEAD OVER HEELS is the bold new musical comedy from the visionaries that rocked Broadway with Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Avenue Q and Spring Awakening. This laugh-out-loud love story is set to the music of the iconic 1980’s all-female rock band The Go-Go’s, including the hit songs, “We Got the Beat,” “Our Lips Are Sealed,” “Vacation,” Belinda Carlisle’s “Heaven is a Place on Earth” and “Mad About You.”
A hilarious, exuberant celebration of love, HEAD OVER HEELS follows the escapades of a royal family on an outrageous journey to save their beloved kingdom from extinction—only to discover the key to their realm’s survival lies within each of their own hearts.
A Hillbarn Theatre Conservatory Teen Company Production
Cast & Production
Show Cast
| Queen Gynecia | Lauren Savage |
|---|---|
| King Basilius | Brandon Savage |
| Mopsa | Amanda Marcos |
| Pamela | Izzy Wynne |
| Philoclea | Maya Sanchez |
| Pythio | Nicki Weppner |
| Musidorus | Noah Itzkovitz |
| Dametus | Zev Rodnitzky |
| Ensemble | Elena Kwauk |
| Ensemble | Roxanne Bobo |
| Ensemble | Rosemary Conant |
| Ensemble | Reina Subramanian |
| Ensemble | Sam Nicodemos Di Bartolo |
| Ensemble | Adam Bartov |
| Ensemble | Aida Zand-Moghaddam |
| Ensemble | Ayanna Rae Hernandez |
| Ensemble | Chloe de Leon |
| Ensemble | Chloe Savage |
| Ensemble | Elisa Snajdr |
| Ensemble | Maddie Banas |
| Ensemble | Megan Iannone |
| Ensemble | Sadie Evans |
| Ensemble | Nick Harb |
| Ensemble | Vanessa Vieira |
Production team
| Director | Adrienne Kaori Walters |
|---|---|
| Music Director | Jad Bernardo |
| Choreographer | River Bermudez Sanders |
| Production Assistant & Asst. Music Director | Monique Hafen Adams |
| Stage Manager | Samantha Ayoob |
| Sound Designer | Sheraj Rangobeer |
| Lighting Designer | Ron Ho |
| Assistant Choreographer | Gabby McIlwain |
| Assistant | Mickey Skinner |
Bios
Adam Bartov
(Ensemble u/s Musidorus) (he/him) is a freshman at Crystal Springs. He has recently appeared as Eugene in Grease and Stokes in Carrie. Adam would like to thank his amazing cast and crew for constantly supporting him despite him tripping every other dance move. He is looking forward to performing this summer in Lighting Thief. Enjoy the show!
Aida Zand-Moghaddam
(Ensemble) (she/her) is an 8th grader at Bowditch. Some of her favorite past productions are The Night of the Macabre (Amelia) with Bowditch Middle School, Aladdin Jr. (Kassim) with ETC, and a lead role in Cinderella with San Francisco Opera. Aida thanks Addie, Jad, River, and Monique for this amazing opportunity! She can’t wait to continue doing more shows with Hilbarn! Aida expresses her gratitude to her family and friends, especially her sister for always being there for her! Lastly, she wants to thank her grandmas who sadly have passed and hopes to make them proud when performing this show.
Amanda Marcos
(Mopsa) (she/her) is a senior at Woodside High School and is thrilled to be in her third Hillbarn production! You may have seen her in Xanadu (Calliope) or Heathers (Heather Duke). Other favorite past roles include Ellie Blake (Freaky Friday), Ms. Potts (Beauty and the Beast) and The Fairy Godmother (Cinderella). After 13 productions and 11 years of vocal lessons, Amanda will be heading off to LA for college to pursue a major in musical theatre!
Ayanna Rae Hernandez
(Ensemble) (she/her) is a freshman at Westmoor High, is jubilant to be back at Hillbarn! She’s been looking forward to performing in this show with such awe-inspiring people. Most recently, Ayanna was seen making her Westmoor High debut as Paulette in Legally Blonde. Her favorite past roles include Melpomene (Xanadu), Ensemble (Heathers) and more! Putting this show together has been a thrilling experience for her, and she’s so excited for you to see her and the cast light up the stage. She would like to give a big thanks to the cast, directors, crew, family and friends for their support! Enjoy the show!
Brandon Savage
(Basilius) (he/him) is thrilled to get to perform with the talented Teen Co. in Head Over Heels! Recent local credits include the Hillbarn productions of Elf! (Walter Hobbs) and Mamma Mia! (Harry Bright), Woodside Community Theater productions of Spamalot (Sir Galahad) and Ragtime (Father), and PSP’s recent production of Next to Normal (Dan). You can also hear Brandon and his entire family on the Reading Bug Adventures children’s podcast. Brandon received his BFA in Musical Theater at NYU/Tisch and, later, his MBA at NYU/Stern. Thank you to Lauren, Chloe, Riley and Jack!
Chloe de Leon
(Ensemble) (she/her) currently attends Woodside High School as a sophomore. She is ecstatic to be in her first Hillbarn Teen Co. production. This past year she was ensemble in Woodside’s Cinderella: Enchanted Edition and ensemble in Hillbarn’s Carrie. She is incredibly grateful for all the hard work put into this show by both the cast and production team.
Chloe Savage
(Ensemble) (she/they) is an eighth grader at Central Middle School in San Carlos. She’s very excited to be doing her fourth show at Hillbarn theater! Some of her favorite past roles include Fiona in Shrek the Musical, Annie in Annie and Belle in Beauty and the Beast! She loves to draw, write, read, but most of all, perform! She can’t wait to bring this musical to life as an ensemble member! A big thanks to all family and friends as well as the entire cast and crew of Head Over Heels! She can’t wait to put such a hilarious and exhilarating performance for and with you all!
Elena Kwauk
(Ensemble u/s Mopsa) (she/her) is a 10th grader at Crystal Springs Uplands School. This is her 8th show at Hillbarn, with examples of previous ones being Hair and Carrie. She loves drawing and her cats, and she hopes you enjoy the show!!!
Elisa Snajdr
(Ensemble) (she/her) is a 7th grader at Bowditch Middle School and considers herself a theater nerd. Theater has allowed her to express her true self and has become her biggest passion. Previous roles include Cinderella (Portia), 101 Dalmatians (Cruella), and Night of the Macabre (Mary). She’s been dancing since she was 4, including 9 years of Irish dance. She’s also interested in filmmaking. She’s thankful to the creative team for giving her the opportunity to join her first Teen Co production and learn alongside her role models. She had so much fun with this show!
Isabella (Izzy) Wynne
(Pamela) (she/her) is a senior at Woodside High School who is thrilled to study Theatre Arts at Loyola Marymount University this fall. Recently, she played Stepmother (Cinderella), earning her a Rita Moreno Award nomination, Kira (Xanadu), Fawn Butterfield (Manor of Death), and she just directed her first play (Teachers on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown). Izzy thanks Hillbarn and Woodside Theatre for challenging her as an artist and helping decide to pursue theatre. She thanks her friends and family for their unrelenting support and love. She hopes you fall “Head over Heels” in love with “Head over heels”!
Lauren Savage
(Gynecia) (she/her) is thrilled to return to the stage and her 1980’s roots after a not-so-brief hiatus (3 kids later!). She is an Emerson College musical theater graduate and was previously a WERS Boston radio host. Lauren co-owns and manages The Reading Bug bookstore in San Carlos. Favorite past shows include West Side Story (Maria) and Marry Me a Little/The Apple Tree (off-Broadway with her husband, Brandon). Hear her on the Reading Bug Adventures podcast (Narrator and music/lyricist). Lauren loves sharing the stage with her husband and their daughters, Chloe and Riley. Thanks to my littlest guy, Jack, and to our family for watching him during rehearsals!
Maddie Banas
(Ensemble) (she/her) will soon be a rising Junior at San Mateo High School. You may have recently seen her performing on stage as Tom Snout in “Something Rotten” (SMHS), as Katja in “Cabaret” (SMHS) or as Vivian Kensington in “Legally Blonde” (Hillbarn). Maddie would like to thank her friends in the cast of HOH and her family for their support. Her other talents include drawing and making others laugh. Maddie is looking forward to several planned trips this summer vacation. She hopes you enjoy the show!
Maya Sánchez
(Philoclea) (she/her) is a senior at Hillsdale High School and is so excited/sad to be in her final Teen Company show at Hillbarn. Maya was previously seen as “Violet” in 9 to 5 and “Veronica” in Heathers. Maya will be pursuing Drama at NYU Tisch School of Drama in the fall. She would like to thank her family, who has supported her in pursuing theater. She would also like to thank Addie, Jad, River, and Monique for being so invested in this production and for all their time spent in bringing this show to life.
Megan Iannone
(Ensemble) (she/her) just finished her sophomore year at San Mateo High School, where this year she has performed in Cabaret (Heidi) and Something Rotten (Ensemble). Outside of theater, she loves running cross country, baking, marching band, dance, improv team, and choir. She would like to thank her friends and family for their constant love and support, and is so excited for you to see this show!
Nick Harb
(Ensemble u/s Dametus) (he/him) is a freshman at San Mateo High. You may have seen him as Christopher Wren (The Mousetrap), Bobby (Cabaret), and Robin (Something Rotten). He is so happy to be back at Hillbarn and he wants to thank his cast mates, the creative team, and his friends. He hopes you enjoy this phantasmagorical show!
Nicki Weppner
(Pythio) (he/they) is a Junior at Woodside High School where he played Prince Christopher Rupert Windermere Vladimir Karl Alexander Francois Reginald Lancelot Herman Gregory James. This is Nicki’s 4th show at Hillbarn, past roles include Sonny in Xanadu, and Billy in Carrie. Nicki has spent the past 10 years of their life dancing ballet at Academy of American Ballet. (Ask Kevin Low!) Nicki is the number one fan of future LMU student and Rita Moreno Nominee Izzy Wynne! He has even expressed his entrepreneurial endeavors through creating and distributing the sneaky Greg T-shirts. Nicki is excited to be interning on the world premiere of Molly Bell’s “Hysterical” at Hillbarn this August.
Noah Patrick Itzkovitz
(Musidorus) (he/him) “is thrilled to be playing Musidorus in Head Over Heels! Noah is a rising Junior here at San Mateo, and most recently played Shakespeare in Something Rotten! Noah thanks the cast, crew, and artistic staff for a wonderful show!”
Reina Subramanian
(Ensemble) (she/her) is a high school freshman and is excited to be performing in Head Over Heels. She is a singer, plays the piano, and has began acting in films. Reina enjoys being on stage and hopes to turn her passion for theatre into a lifelong career. She hopes you enjoy the show!
Rosemary Conant
(Ensemble) (she/her) is a Freshman at BHS and is thrilled to be a part of Head Over Heels. This summer, she was in Carrie with Hillbarn, and was most recently in Disaster at her high school. Rosie would like to thank the cast, crew, and directors for inspiring her, and her parents for always supporting her.
Roxanne Bobo
(Ensemble u/s Philoclea) (she/her) is currently a junior at Woodside High School. She has played Lisa in Mamma Mia, Miss Minchin in A Little Princess, and most recently, Cinderella in Cinderella Enchanted Edition. She is extremely greatful for all of the friends she’s made throughout the process of this amazing production. She looks forward to doing more Hillbarn productions in the future!
Sadie Evans
(Ensemble) (she/her) is in 9th grade at Castilleja and is so excited to be in her first production at Hillbarn! Some of her favorite past roles include Portia in Something Rotten, Bert in Mary Poppins, and Gertrude in Seussical. She would like to thank her family for being her biggest supporters and would also like to thank the entire Hillbarn company for everything they have done to make this amazing show possible!
Sam Nicodemos Di Bartolo
(Ensemble u/s Pythio) (he/him) “Auditioning for his first role, Mike TV in Willy Wonka, in the 5th grade, Sam discovered he loved acting and dancing as well as singing. Performing in shows like HOH have become his purest source of true gratitude and happiness.”
Vanessa Vieira
(Ensemble u/s Pamela) She/Her is thrilled to be a part of her first production at Hillbarn in Head Over Heels! Vanessa has previously played Patrice in Borel Drama’s production of 13 the musical. This being her first show led her to join Hillbarns Teen Conservatory program. Vanessa currently attends Hillsdale High school as a 15 year old Freshman and is looking forward to her upcoming Sophomore year. Outside of theatre she is a part of Hillsdales water polo and swim team and enjoys playing guitar and hanging out with her friends. She would like to thank her family for all of their support and encouragement throughout the experience. She would also like to thank Addie, Mo, Jad, and River for all of their hard work and dedication to the cast.
Zev Rodnitzky
(Dametus) (he/him) is a 9th grader at Hillsdale High School. His recent roles includes “Nick Bottom” in A Midsummers Night Dream, Ensemble in 9-5, and ensemble in Carrie. He wants to thank his dog and family for being supportive. He hopes you enjoy the show!
