On Nov. 9, 10, 11 and 12 at the Middleton High School (MHS) Performing Arts Center, MHS Theatre captivated their audience with this year’s fall musical, “Urinetown.”

“Urinetown” is a Tony Award-winning musical comedy by Greg Kotis and Mark Hollman. It tells the story of a society impaired by a terrible water shortage, which the government attempts to regulate by outlawing all private toilets. A “pay-to-pee” system is created–and mostly perpetrated by the main antagonist, Caldwell B. Cladwell–in which all citizens must abide by the law and pay to relieve themselves in the public amenity. The consequence for resisting these laws is being sentenced to Urinetown, which is intensely feared.

This system stands until the protagonist, Bobby Strong, meets Hope Cladwell, who is the daughter of Caldwell B. Cladwell. Bobby and Hope grow closer and Hope encourages Bobby to fight for what he believes in, unknowingly encouraging him to defy her father. When Bobby begins to protest with his community, opening the gates of rebellion, Cladwell sends Bobby to Urinetown, and the rest of the townspeople find out what Urinetown truly is. 

Throughout this production, Kotis and Hollman emphasize real issues, such as capitalism, climate change and corruption through the use of comedy.

“‘Urinetown’ is told in a way that makes people want to listen,” said costume designer Keira Marckel, a senior.

Before this show took to the stage, a lot of hard work went into it. Actors and crew members alike stayed late after school rehearsing and preparing for months to bring this show to life.

For the actors, getting into character was a must for this show.

Rebekah Stine, a junior who played Officer Barrel, described getting into character as “channeling her feminine rage and turning it into masculine rage.” She put her own emotions to use, contributing to the overall quality of her character.

Another important aspect was the stage crew’s organization of the show. Whether that be Lighting crew, which handles appropriate lighting; costumer designers, who put together outfits that fit the theme of the show; hair and makeup crew, who provide actors with hair and makeup assistance; run crew, who moves pieces of the set throughout the performance; stage manager(s), who give actors support during rehearsals; and many other wonderful people who help with the production.

“The entire crew has been incredibly helpful,” said Liev Schiffman, a junior who played Caldwell B. Cladwell. “They [handled] the production brilliantly and [helped] hold it together.”

Crew also works very hard to bring the show to life. “We all work as a team,” said costume designer, Star Tangwall, a junior.

Once it was time for the show to begin, excitement levels were high and actors and crew were ready to bring “Urinetown” to fruition. Many of the actors were ecstatic to put their best foot forward for the audience for every night of performances.

“I wanted to give one hundred percent of my energy levels,” said Owen Sehgal, a junior who played Bobby Strong. “This is a very fun and goofy show.”

Behind all of the satire and pee-related jokes was a deeper message. The cast and crew agreed that this was a show that should highlight the faults of many real-life issues. “Urinetown” comments on the modern-day society that we are all living in, and focuses on the important issues our society faces such as shortages of vital resources and the realities of capitalism. 

“People will go into the show thinking it’s a joke and then come out of the show realizing it’s not all a joke,” said Ava Greenberg, a sophomore who played Hope Cladwell.

Schiffman remarked on the integration of these issues. “There is one line in the show where one of the main characters says, ‘I had no idea large monopolizing corporations could be such a force for good in the world.’ This line alone very explicitly demonstrates how those corporations aren’t actually good, but are portrayed as good,” he said.

With the deeper meaning of this show being the backbone of the plot, MHS Theatre still wanted to make its audience laugh and findlight in the darkness of modern-day society.

“I hope the audience appreciates that it makes fun of societal issues,”director Katrina Brunner said.

“Urinetown” also pokes fun at the structure and expectations of other musicals. This was demonstrated by the pauses in the show, where Officer Lockstock, played by junior Linus Ballard and Little Sally, played by sophomore Isa Killian, reflected on what was going on within the story as if they were outsiders to the story. They would then talk to each other about the possibilities of the rest of the story.

An impressive production, “Urinetown” successfully pulled people out of the cold and into the theater, where they could see the talents of MHS students. The acting was exemplary throughout the laughter and tears of the story and the show was an absolute success with seats filled by audience members and dazzling performances. 

The pit orchestra was also a lovely addition to the show as always, creating beautiful music below the stage to accompany the singing above the stage.

MHS Theatre encourages others to join the magic in their upcoming productions. “Theatre is a great community that helps guide students,” said student stage manager, Aadhi Balasubramanian.