Nikiski stages student-directed production of ‘Wonka’

A chocolate factory, the Oompa Loompas and a familiar tale of morality are all displayed in the Nikiski Middle/High School auditorium this weekend as Nikiski Bulldog Theatre puts on “Willy Wonka Jr.” at 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.

“Wonka” follows Charlie Bucket, a young girl from a poor home who gets the opportunity to visit the fantastical chocolate factory alongside four other lucky — if less virtuous — children. The show features a cast of Nikiski middle schoolers and was directed by a group of high school students.

In a top hat and purple coat is McKinley Frary, in the title role as the wacky chocolatier, Willy Wonka.

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The show is fun, weird and wonky, with bright sets and fun effects, Frary said. Characters fly, the factory set stretches up two stories and there’s an array of other silly touches.

Wonka himself, she said, is a character who’s bright and goofy, but can turn on a dime. Like Gene Wilder’s portrayal in the 1971 film, Frary said part of the fun in the role is the way he oscillates between showing grace and fury to the visiting children. He takes each tragedy that befalls them with a chilly nonchalance.

Over the duration of the show, Frary said that Wonka teaches Charlie to be thankful for her life while showing her wonder and opportunity that she’s never known.

Helming the production is a team of high schoolers filling a variety of directing roles. Among them are Belle Morris, Kincaid Jenness, Kyler Allen, Oshie Broussard, Allie Spurgeon and Jackson Hooper.

Morris said taking the lead on the production gives her and the other directors an opportunity to build connections and share learnings with “the future generation of theater kids.”

The dynamic was something like acting as older siblings, she said. Though the directors are older, they’re all students at the same school.

“You have to earn their respect enough for them to listen to you, but you still need to treat them as their age,” she said. “They understand that I’m still a teenager too.”

In “Wonka,” Morris said, Nikiski Bulldog Theatre is showcasing “a bunch of kids that are ready to rock and put on a great show.”

Jenness said that he and Broussard lead stage management, sets and props. Serving in a directorial role demands a lot of bandwidth, he said, but the stress melts away when the younger actors put on their show.

“You see how good the kids are, and it’s like ‘oh, that’s why I’m doing this.’”

“Wonka” is a goofy show that everyone’s familiar with, Jenness said, and it features a lot of room for the actors to put on goofy accents or otherwise get big with their roles. Similarly, designing sets for a whimsical chocolate factory means throwing “whatever crazy idea we have” out into the show.

For as bright and imaginative as the factory set is, though, Jenness said it’s the large bed occupied by Charlie’s four grandparents that’s his favorite piece of the set.

“It’s giant, it’s heavy, it’s gorgeous,” he said. “I love the bed.”

Allen said he serves in a role like a vocal director, working with the actors on their melodies and technique. What that really means, he said, is sharing what he’s learned himself from the theater program at Nikiski.

“I get to share this love of music and self-expression,” he said. “I get to watch them step into their own talents and discover their own abilities as performers.”

It’s different, he said, to be on the other side of the production. Where he’s many times been seen onstage in recent years, now he’s playing “support.” That means running around backstage doing what he can to make things run smoothly for the actors, ensuring that they have what they need to succeed.

“Willy Wonka Jr.” will run Friday and Saturday, Dec. 6 and 7, in the Nikiski Middle/High School Auditorium. Both shows run at 7 p.m. and tickets can be purchased online through a link at “Nikiski Bulldog Theater” on Facebook.

Reach reporter Jake Dye at jacob.dye@peninsulaclarion.com.

The cast of Nikiski Bulldog Theatre’s “Willy Wonka Jr.” rehearse at Nikiski Middle/High School on Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

McKinley Frary portrays Willy Wonka in a rehearsal of Nikiski Bulldog Theatre’s “Willy Wonka Jr.” at Nikiski Middle/High School on Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

Adelaide Denison, on the slide, and the cast of Nikiski Bulldog Theatre’s “Willy Wonka Jr.” rehearse at Nikiski Middle/High School on Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)