New Baldwin High School musical director preps 'Once Upon a Mattress'

Baldwin High School musical director and choreographer Joe Joyce understands the impact a show can have on a young person.

The Seton LaSalle grad was a freshman in the 1970s when his drama teacher, Ted White, changed his life forever by casting him in “Hello, Dolly!”

Seton LaSalle partnered with Churchill High School at the time to rent the Broadway costumes and set from a touring company.

“We were on the set that the Broadway stars were on, and we were wearing the clothes that the Broadway actors wore,” Joyce explained. “That really makes a huge impression when you’re 14. It totally changed my life … Everything I learned about teamwork, I learned in a high school musical.”

The Brookline native would go on to spend his summers at Odd Chair Playhouse in Pittsburgh and made his professional debut at Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera while in high school. He was mentored by Pittsburgh actress and director Lenora Nemetz.

Joyce earned a bachelor of fine arts in theater from Boston University in 1979 and a master’s in musical theater from San Diego State University in 2010. He spent more than three decades in the entertainment business, toured with national companies and performed in multiple off-Broadway shows.

One of the good friends Joyce met along his journey Golden Globe and Academy Award-winning actress Geena Davis (“Beetlejuice,” “A League of Their Own,” “The Fly”). The two studied together at Boston University.

“We share a very twisted sense of humor, which drew us together almost immediately,” Joyce said. “We both had elderly parents that didn’t quite understand why their children were going into show business, so we had that in common.”

Davis attended multiple shows Joyce directed and choreographed in Los Angeles. She would leave voice-mails after shows, and he would play them for the students.

But like for so many people, he felt a pull back to his hometown.

“Even though I’ve been away from Pittsburgh, it’s never been out of my heart,” Joyce said.

New job

Joyce, 63, of Mt. Lebanon was teaching at Clairon University last year when the pandemic hit. He was laid off over the summer due to covid and decreasing student numbers.

In search of a new job, he found an advertisement for the Baldwin position and really impressed administrators.

“Joe Joyce brings an incredible depth of experience to the high school,” Principal Shayn Tomaszewski said. “Throughout the interview process, I was impressed by his artistic vision. He is committed to innovation and reinvention, while still being respectful of the traditional repertoire of musical theater.”

Joyce replaced Jason Coll, who left his alma matter after years as its musical director and drama club sponsor to spend more time with his family.

“They’re treating me great and the kids are unbelievable,” Joyce said. “They’re really wonderful.”

Musical selection

Joyce selected “Once Upon a Mattress,” a musical comedy with lyrics by Marshall Barer and music by Mary Rodgers, as his introductory piece to the district.

Student auditions took place the second week of January, and rehearsals began the following week.

“If you know the students and know their strengths, you pick a show that’s going to play to their strengths,” Joyce said. “Because I didn’t know the students at Baldwin, I was totally flying blind with this. I picked the title because it’s a show I love and think it’s really funny. Luckily the stars were in alignment and I found the right people to play the parts.”

The school has both the live rights and streaming rights to the show, but the group is really counting on being able to perform a live show.

The play was written as an adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale “The Princess and the Pea.”

A princess is unable to sleep on a bed of many mattresses when a tiny pea is placed underneath the bottom one.

The king was struck by a witch’s curse and the queen assumes power.

Joyce likened it to the fractured fairy tales segment on the classic cartoon “Rocky & Bullwinkle.”

The original production opened on May 1959 at the off-Broadway Phoenix Theatre and later to Broadway at what is now known as the Neil Simon Theatre.

The Baldwin High School performers will dawn the costumes worn in the musical’s 1996 Broadway revival thanks to some of Joyce’s connections. They come from Costume World in Boca Raton, Fla.

Everyone’s temperature is taken prior to rehearsals. Students and staffers are masked and socially distant when possible.

Joyce said he hopes the students understand the joy of musicals and why people burst into song.

“The reason we sing is because the emotion gets so high there’s no other way to express ourselves except either to burst into song or go into a dance,” he said. “I think that’s very enjoyable for people to watch, especially coming out of this past year with covid and everything.

“I think our audiences are really yearning to be back in the theater to see live performances, particularly live performances of young people. There just really isn’t anything like seeing a young man or young woman. You can see it click in their eyes. You can see it click in their performances. They’re really into it.”

Students involved in “Once Upon a Mattress” include Max Pratley (Minstrel), Nathan Davis (Royal Quizmaster), Lila Kelley (Princess No. 12), Kate Powell (Queen Aggravain), Christ Storm (King Sextimus), Carson Gregg (Dauntless), Jay Puff (Jester), Ally Dallmus (Lady Larkin) and Quintin Michalski (Sir Harry).

“Once Upon a Matress”

When: 7 p.m. on April 18, 22, 23, 24, 29, 30 and May 1.

Where: Baldwin High School, 4653 Clairton Blvd.

Info: bwschools.net