Mary Poppins comes to Proctors

Posted at: 10/04/2012 4:41 PM | Updated at: 10/05/2012 10:33 AM
By: Benita Zahn

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The magic of Mary Poppins is delighting audiences this week at Proctors.

And the touring company is also offering a little something extra, so off to Proctors I went - along with photographer Richie Frederick.

At Proctors Theater, you'll usually find me going into a hospital as the health reporter. But today the only prescription is a spoon full of sugar to help the medicine go down as they're going to transform me into Mary Poppins.

And with that we're escorted backstage at Proctor's Theater. First stop was meeting Danielle King the wardrobe supervisor and Hailei call the hair and make up supervisor. The two ladies have countless pieces of costuming and wigs to keep track of. And there's a method to wearing these wigs. My hair has to be pinned and wrapped - then the cap put on -- then the crowning glory. Now it's time for the costume.

The Mary Poppins blouse. The slip for twirling. Twirling. Yes, when she dances. Okay. We finish it off with a little red bowtie and then the Mary Poppins hat. See you in a minute.

I'm just about ready for my close up - but first a little lipstick. Then down the hallway to meet the real Mary, 23-year-old Madeline Trumble, just a year and a half out of the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor and this is her second tour. First time she understudied Mary, now she's the lead with all the costumes, and dozens of quick changes ..

Performing since she was 7, Madeline never seriously studied dance or voice - in fact, she went to college thinking she'd be a doctor. But as Mary Poppins says, anything can happen if you let it, and she let theater happen. And she's happy to share a few lessons in being Mary Poppins - feet always in first position, that's heels together, toes out, hands at the waist.

The show runs through Sunday at Proctors.