Local Choir Tour Group Performing 'Godspell' Features Verona Students

The Youth Choir Mission Tour Group of the  performed the musical Godspell to packed houses throughout southern Florida earlier this year. Now, they’re performing home shows for their community.

A youthful rendition of the classic 1970s musical comes to Caldwell on Friday and Saturday, April 15 and 16, at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, April 17, at 6 p.m. In the meantime, Patch spoke with Rev. Barbara Jo Piercy, the church’s minister of music, about the popular production. 

Tell us about the choir.

The students are from the Caldwells, Verona and West Orange. It’s made up of both church and community members. Even though we have children from different congregations, there is certainly enough common ground to connect to.

What is your role in the production? 

I’ve directed the shows in the past, but this year I’m actually more like the producer. My daughter, Adriana Piercy, is director and handled most of the choreography. Adriana is a professional dancer with the Miami City Ballet — she worked on the show while home on breaks. She’s 21 years old and grew up in the program. It’s nice to have a youthful perspective of the production.

Do you hold auditions for the choir?

We have auditions for the main parts. The kids don’t have to audition, they can just be in the show’s chorus. To solo, or to be in the dance numbers, though, they have to audition. I have professionals from the performing community come in and do the auditions for me. This way, it’s fair and unbiased.

How do you select each year’s production?

We ask the kids for ideas. We also consider what kind of resources we have. We’re somewhat limited in what shows we do, they have to have a moral, religious message. For instance, last year, we did Fiddler on the Roof. It’s not Christian, but we learned a lot of from it. The children may never remember the dance steps, but they’ll remember something about the devotions and concepts we talked about and that hopefully will make their life’s journey easier.

How long is the season?

September through May. The first production is a cabaret in September, which about 25 youth perform in. The choir also sings regularly for worship services as well as Christmas Eve and the Easter Vigil, the night before Easter. The kids have been working really hard on the vigil. Even those that aren’t church members perform in these services. It’s not just about the main production. It’s about the whole program for the year.

Tell us about the tour.

We toured in February, performing the show five times in south Florida. Now we’re performing what we call our home shows. It’s kind of like Broadway, when they tour for a while, then bring the show home. Unlike Broadway, we’re not doing this to work out the kinks. But the kids have become very performance savvy — and can adapt on the road. They’ve become quite professional. It’s kind of neat.

How big is the cast?

We have a cast of 50, which includes some of the band members (drums, bass, keyboard).

We also have adult advisors helping out. In fact, many of the adults involved grew up in the program. Their children are now in the program and in some cases, their kids have graduated from the program but they still help advise the youth. I’m really blessed to have that kind of commitment from adults. Kids love the inter-generational experience.

What was your first tour?

Our first tour ever was actually Godspell. We took a bus and went to Philadelphia for the weekend. The next year, we took a bus to Florida and performed Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Two couples that have been with us since that trip are still involved — and they’re now grandparents!

We’ve been all over: Seattle, Montreal, California, Florida. We’ve even been abroad to England and Scotland.

How are funds raised for travel?

Proceeds from the cabaret helps, but the kids and adults involved pay tour fees. We keep the costs down by staying with host programs. That helps keep it lower, than say, some of the school trips. The donation at the door supports the tour, but also helps fund the choir’s mission projects. For instance, some of the money made on tour this year went to a local doctor who delivers school supplies in Haiti. 

What else should we know about the production?

We have Broadway producer Ken Davenport coming Sunday night. He’s working on bringing Godspell back to Broadway for its 40th anniversary. He’ll be talking about the musical afterwards to any interested audience members. I’m excited for the kids to have an opportunity like that.

FIVE FACTS:

Medium: Theater

Professional or Amateur: Ordained Presbyterian minister; Minister of Music

Training: I received degrees in organ performance and sacred music, and then I went back to school for a masters in divinity at Drew Seminary.

This year’s inspiration: The graduating seniors. They specifically requested Godspell.