This spring while you are seated in the Arts Center auditorium, immersed in Donna and Sophie’s characters in Mamma Mia, it may not occur to you the years of passion and work that these actresses have put into their craft.
Members of GA’s Belfry Club since their freshman year, Lauren Sass ‘26 and Gianna Mooney ‘25 will perform in their last production together at GA this spring. The two have been in the performing arts from an elementary age and as they approach the end of their high school careers, both look forward to continuing their passion for theater beyond GA.
Mooney and Sass have flourished in their time performing at GA. Belfry, as well as performing arts classes offered at school, have provided them with the tools to hone their skills and grow as performers.
“The thing about GA, which really differentiates us from other schools, is that we are able to really build performing arts classes into our schedule,” Sass said. “Being able to sing every day in choir or taking Mr. Gibbons musical theater class. Having that time every day outside of rehearsal for a musical has really changed me as a performer.”
Belfry has not only facilitated their growth as performers but also as people, providing Mooney with an opportunity to contribute and lead within the GA community.
“It’s really taught me leadership,” Mooney said. “I remember I didn’t get Prefect and all this stuff was happening where I couldn’t get a leadership role, but with theater, that was always kind of my thing. I feel like that’s my outlet to lead in this community.”
Mooney and Sass are not only dedicated to theater at GA, but they are also dedicated outside of school.
Sass has performed at Sony Hall along with Broadway greats, such as Erica Henningsen, known for her role of Cady Heron in Mean Girls, and has done multiple off-broadway shows in New York City.
“I always try to audition for as many things as I can just to get that experience,” Sass said.
Mooney studies with her mother, who is a professional opera singer, and works as a counselor at a theater camp over the summer, teaching kids about different aspects of theater and sharing her passion with youth.
Both Sass and Mooney intend to carry their love for theater with them after the closure of their time in Belfry.
Sass intends to pursue a BFA (Bachelor of Fine Arts) in music theater or acting and hopes to eventually go on to perform professionally both on stage and on screen. Her music theater class will transition into an independent study of BFA class with Mr. Gibbons as she prepares for college auditions.
On the other hand, Mooney plans to primarily pursue an education and career in business but is considering minoring in theater and would continue to do smaller productions for fun.
Though Sass and Mooney plan to continue their theater paths in different ways, theater has brought joy into both Sass and Mooney’s lives from the earliest stages of their careers to now.
“My favorite early memory would be in my first show, Peter Pan, and I was a pirate and I was at a theater company where you had to buy your own costumes..but I remember buying a pirate costume,” Mooney said. “And everyone said mine was the best and I felt so good about myself.”
“I’ve really grown strong friendships [in Belfry], like Gianna,” Sass said. “We’ve all really grown together. So just being able to rehearse with them every day and start the early stages of a character and then our actual performances that’s always really neat for me to see and are great memories for me.”
Mooney and Sass, two friends who have formed a bond through a shared passion for performing, will take their final bow sharing the stage in the upcoming Belfry production of Mamma Mia, starring as the mother-daughter duo of Donna and Sophie Sheridan.