As the stage of Scheck Hillel lit up for the 2025-2026 season of theater, students from grades 3-5 filled the stage with their many talents for the Jordan Alexander Ressler Arts Program production of Roald Dahl’s Matilda Jr. After six months of hard work, the lower school cast members illustrated their dedication through their wonderful performances on February 4-8, 2026.
The famous musical encompasses the journey of Matilda Wormwood, an intelligent and clever girl who feels pressured by her cruel parents and frightening headmistress, Miss Trunchbull. While fighting for her rights at school, Matilda utilizes her love of knowledge, courage, and friendship to bring justice to all and find a welcoming home with her adoring teacher, Miss Honey. These roles were highlighted by a variety of captivating young actors.
However, alongside the acting itself, much of the work was conducted behind the scenes. With an amazing production team, consisting of Stuart Rosenthal, John Baldwin, Laura Bass, Diana Quiroz, Eric Marchetta, Analucia Raimont, Nathan Schonfeld ‘26, Chris Sclarandi, Jennifer Naim, Gonzalo Garcia, Brian Ramsey, Tamar Grobman ‘27, and Jaime Fridzon ‘27, the play was a possibility. From this motivated team, two leading technicians, Jaime Fridzon and Nathan Schonfeld, had numerous valuable thoughts and lessons to share.
Fridzon, the assistant stage manager with three years of prior experience, not only helped with deck cues but also organized the microphones and cue sheets for the technicians to follow. When asked about his struggles during production, Fridzon shared that people tend to underestimate the amount of work that goes into creating the show.
He also shared that balancing the show and school work can make commitment difficult. This became especially true when the show drew near, as the crew needed to help with set cues while also keeping the actors quiet and safe, ensuring it ran smoothly. Yet, he observed that the kids learned how to be confident, open, independent, and communicative.
Similarly, Schonfeld, a current senior who has also participated in multiple shows on and off the stage, contributed by serving as lead lighting designer, tech support, and assisting the director when needed. Schonfeld mentioned that while designing the lights, he worked with “our theater’s incredible Broadway-level technical setup with high-tech microphones, lighting, and projection system,” and stayed in school as late as 10 p.m. at times to fully execute his vision.
Students like Schonfeld put a lot of work into Scheck Hillel’s theater program to help make its performances successful and fun for those involved. He further stated that being a senior who has done theater from a young age has given him a different perspective on the show. He can look back a truely appreciate all that theater has given him, and see these younger kids learn skills that they will take with them for the rest of their lives.
He believes that even though “showtime is generally one of the smoothest and most fun parts of the process where everyone is just doing what they rehearse,” and “hopes that they actually remember the rehearsal process, the days where they were learning and growing to be better onstage and off, to be better actors and people in real life.
