Running from April 6 to 9, a totally-over-the-top performance of Batboy, The Musical played to amazed, riveted, wildly applauding audiences in Schreiber Auditorium. The story of a freakish outsider trying to gain a place in society, the show was directed, choreographed, and polished into brilliance by Cam Gelb, assisted by student director Elyssa Jakim, with inspired musical direction by Allison Shapiro, orchestral direction by Mark Brenner and technical direction by Victor Gelb.

Truly Broadway-worthy lead performances included the vocal/acrobatics of David Gelb in the title role, as well as stunning vocal/dramatic performances by Jesse Zeidman as Meredith Parker, Greg Ormont as Dr. Thomas Parker, Sarah Mellen as Shelley Parker and show-stopping cameo vocals by Leslie Krotman as the Reverend Hightower and Nick Otte as the god, Pan.

The demanding show, carried off with zest and zeal by an amazingly talented host of performers/vocalists, is a crazy concoction of a wildest myths and musicals, whose characters give us sudden glimpses of the losers, Faustian overreaches, botched inventors, maniacal chemists, and generally, the seemy underside of dramatis personae haunting shows such as Okalahoma, My Fair Lady, Frankenstein, The Phantom of the Opera, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Return to the Forbidden Planet, Jesus Christ Superstar and The Lion King as well as films such as Truffaut's The Wild Child, Carrie and Whatever Happened to Baby Jane - all crossed with grotesquely outlandish tragic plots like that of Aeschalus' Oresteia Trilogy and Sophocles Oedipus Rex.

The cast of characters included Rick Taylor by Dan Marmor; Ruthie Taylor; Edna, a waitress by Allison Schenkler; Ron Taylor by Sarah Sidford; Sheriff Reynolds by Philip Fleisher; Dillon, a rancher by Selli Blum; Clem, a townsman by Bob Ferris; Bud, a rancher by Nick Otte; Lorraine, a rancher's wife, by Fredi Bernstein, Daisy, a school teacher, by Katie Hughes; Maggie, the mayor, by Caroline Pickering; Ned, a rancher; the Rev. Hightower by Leslie Krotman; Roy, a rancher by Michael Ambrosio; Mrs. Taylor by Matthew Gray; Chester by Andrew Martinolich; Earl and The Institute Man, by David Rosenblatt. The orchestra under the inspired direction of Mark Brenner, featured Ms. Allison Shapiro, piano; Matt Katz on keyboards, Andrew Hoch on guitar; Tom Lisi, bass and Theo Nobel, percussion.

As usual, this vocally and dramatically demanding show required not only a topnotch support team of directors, but also a dedicated production and technical staff. The production staff included producer/technical director, Victor A. Gelb; artistic director, Helen Albertson; costume design and execution, Cam Gelb; student director, Elyssa Jakim; dramaturge, Philip Fleisher; props, Allison Sticker, Hilary Orzick and Shannon Ferguson.

The technical staff included Ogechi Abara, Steve Albert, Celina Cicchetti, Max Garett, Nathan Kellner, Alexis Konas, Nicole LaLena, Megan Lewis, Jared Maldonado, Andrew Marcus, Liana Maraschiello and Stefan Muller, Stephen Pierce, Steven Roberts, Neala Schiff, Beth Spergel, Josh Talesnick, Granger Titcomb, Ken Watanabe, Brian Wedeking and Richard Albertson.