May 26, 2015
Poppins People Post
Hope Hodges
"Jane Banks"

Out of all my shows at MHT, Mary Poppins has been the longest and one of the most fun I have ever done. Michael (Cochran), Emi (Hensel), and Cindy (Miller) do such a great job with us. They’ve put together a wonderful show! 

Mary Poppins altogether is an extremely fun show. Playing Jane Banks is very neat, because she takes on so many different emotions. In the first act she can be very naughty, short tempered, and rude. But in the second act, she is happy, thoughtful, understanding, caring, and sometimes scared. 

The very big musical numbers are super exciting. My favorite song is "Step in Time.” Emi did an amazing job with the choreography!

One of the best things about the show is the cast. Calling them a cast is really not appropriate. They are family. Tony (Bohannon) and Lucas are father and son and they already have a special bond. At first I did not have that with many people in the cast, but now I feel like I do. Stephanie (Hines) has been a mother figure to me. Lucas and I definitely have that brother/sister relationship. We agree on some things, and argue on a lot of other things! We both have a unique relationship with Mary (Bowden) too. If I had a dollar for every time we laugh, I would be a billionaire! Mary makes the proper face every time she walks off stage. It is hilarious! No words can describe it.

It is great to have Addie Beth Franklin and Kathryn Johnston in the show. Since I’ve done all my MHT shows with Kathryn, and Addie Beth was in the Best Christmas Pageant Ever with us, it is like a reunion. It is genuinely exciting working with them. The entire cast has been so friendly to me and I would like to thank them for that. 

Rehearsals for Mary Poppins are terrific. I like working with the new sets and props. It is neat to see how everything ends up working together. My dad always says I am in a better mood after practice. I guess I know that I can always count on Market House Theatre to cheer me up! I really don’t want it to end. I know that I will cry a lot when it’s over, but all good things must come to an end, and this experience has definitely been good!