For Creekside Middle School’s Ryan Poziviak, the best part about portraying his character in “Bye Bye Birdie” is it’s the opposite of his own personality.
“It’s fun to be outgoing and do whatever I want,” Poziviak said of playing rock star Conrad Birdie. “My favorite song is “A Lot of Livin’ to Do,” because of the message of it. It’s all what my character is about.”
Creekside is presenting three performances Nov. 21 to 23 at the Carmel school’s auditorium. The shows are set for 7 p.m. Nov. 21-22 and 2 p.m. Nov. 23.
The musical, set in 1958, was inspired by Elvis Presley’s notice of being drafted in the U.S. Army.
Evan Peacock plays Albert Peterson, who writes songs for Birdie. At his girlfriend’s urging, he writes “One Last Kiss” for Birdie to sing to one of his fan club members on “The Ed Sullivan Show” before his induction.
“When you think of rock star, you don’t always think about what goes on behind the scene,” said Peacock, whose biggest number to sing is “Put on a Happy Face.” “It’s the biggest role that I’ve had. It can be stressful at times.”
Anna Wagner plays Rose Alvarez, Peterson’s longtime girlfriend.
“He wanted to run the family business and I want him to be an English teacher and settle down,” Wagner said. “And he doesn’t do that until eight years.”
The challenge for Wagner is the romantic scene.
“I’ve never been in love with someone on the stage, so it’s a stretch,” Wagner said.
Hannah Dillon plays Kim MacAfee, who is selected as the winner from the fan club.
“I’m the classic fan girl for Conrad Birdie,” Dillon said. “I’ve never been crazy, super over-the-top in love with a rock star. It’s fun to play the part. I get to be very outgoing, but it’s funny because I get to be on the stage. I’m so overwhelmed she is in love with Conrad.”
Dillon said she likes the energetic pace and the upbeat songs.
“I like the coming-of-age theme of this, of watching teenagers trying to figure out who they want to be,” said choirs director Nicole Johnson, who directs the show with her husband, Greg.
Tickets are on sale at creeksidetheater.ludus.com or at the door. Tickets are $5 for adults and $3 for students.
