Play Report: The Music Man

Recently, I attended a high school production of The Music Man written by Meredith Wilson, but directed by Blair Cromwell and Aaron Fawcett. This production took place in a small southern town in the 1920’s. The play begins as a group of salesmen sit on a train discussing the legendary salesman Harold Hill, who has apparently traveled town to town scamming their costumers and ultimately making an unfair profit from what was once the reliable income of noble salesmen all throughout the south. He comes into town during the fourth of July holiday and persuade almost all of the town people that their beautifully quaint, little town needs a boys’ band to keep the young boys and men of the town out of trouble. On his way through the town and celebrating Independence Day with the rest of the town, he sees a long lost friend, Marcellus Washburn, who also was his co- heart in many earlier shams, who agrees to help him coax the towns’ people into believing him. Professor Harold Hill soon discovers that there is a local piano teacher and librarian, Marian Paroo, so he decides the only way to keep his secret safe that not only can he not lead a boys band, but is completely a sham, is to steal her heart and have her fall hopelessly fall in love with him to distract her long enough to get his money and get out of town. Along the way, he makes many friends in town and earns many people’s trust. But after a few weeks of living in the town, wining and dining Miss Paroo, and collecting money, Harold Hill realizes that it’s time to get out of dodge. Charlie Cowell, an anvil salesman, comes into the town and shocks everyone by telling the entire town of the sham and how Hill is a con man, and sends the town on a man hunt for him. Just as Harold is about to be captured and interrogated, his new found love, Miss Paroo, stands up for him in enough time for the boys’ band to come out and preform in