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Ask Crystal Theatre president Cheryl Kemeny about her favorite memory of longtime student Matt Chiappetta and she doesn't hesitate for a second."His last performance was in my show 'Whistleville' as a tenor whose voice always cracked under pressure," she says. "Matt worried that everyone in the audience would think he had a bad voice." To show off his true pipes, Kemeny wrote in a challenging high note for Matt's character to hit at the end of the show. "And he did!" Matt, remembered as funny, sweet, and endlessly enthusiastic, signed up for his first class at Crystal Theatre when he was in 2nd grade and performed in more than 35 plays before passing away suddenly from a heart attack in March, 2004 at age 13. It was two weeks before he was supposed to play the lead role in Spinning Tale, which is this big musical comedy, Kemeny recalls. At first, Kemeny wasnt sure how to proceed, but Matts fellow cast members, all kids themselves, knew that their friend would have wanted the show to go on. With Matthews best buddy Benjamin Simpson (now a Music Theatre major at Boston Conservatory) taking over his part, the decision was made to honor Matt by doing what he loved to do. At the end of each show, kids read speeches they wrote about Matt, says Kemeny. Every evening concluded with the entire cast uniting to sing his favorite song, Celine Dions My Heart Will Go On. That Titanic tune has been a mainstay in the annual Matthew Chiappetta Memorial Concerts ever since. Determined that Matts memory, too, would go on, Kemeny started the Matt Chiappetta Scholarship Fund, which covers a year of tuition for unlimited classes at Crystal Theatre. Unlike most scholarships, which are awarded based on talent, winners of the Chiappetta Fund are selected for displaying the same spunk and spirit as the promising young actor. Entrants write essays and audition for a committee of Matts friends now college students who choose the boy and girl they believe best represent their pal. Aspiring thespians can find info on applying for the 2010 scholarship at www.crystaltheatre.org. Call 203-847-4850 for more info.
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