Needham High School students will perform "Freaky Friday: A New Musical" Oct. 23-25, donating all ticket proceeds to a Boston youth arts nonprofit.
Students Acting to Make a Difference (SAMD), a student-led production company at Needham High, chose OrigiNation Cultural Arts Center as this year's beneficiary, as first reported by Hometown Weekly. SAMD produces one show per school year and donates all ticket revenue to a selected organization.
OrigiNation provides dance, theater arts and African history education to more than 1,500 young people in Boston each year, according to Hometown Weekly. Founded in 1994, the nonprofit serves children and youth ages 2 to 18 in Roxbury, Dorchester and Mattapan, offering nine-month repertory dance training and opportunities to perform in concerts and tour internationally, according to a Social Innovation Forum profile of the organization.
Shaumba-Yandje Dibinga co-founded OrigiNation and serves as its artistic director. Her sister Musau Dibinga is executive director, the Bay State Banner reported in December 2025. Their parents moved to Boston from the Congo and organized the city's Kwanzaa celebrations in the 1970s.
The musical, based on Mary Rodgers' novel and the Disney films, follows a mother and teenage daughter who swap bodies and have one day to put things right.
Club adviser Kristen Mazzocchi co-directs the production with Amber Crossman. Jonathan VanderWoude serves as musical director.
Buying tickets is a two-step process, according to the NHS Fine and Performing Arts website. Residents first purchase through MySchoolBucks, then complete a separate seat preference form. Tickets are $12 for students and $17 for adults. Residents with questions can contact fine and performing arts coordinator Valerie Maio at [email protected].
Upcoming performances:
- Friday, Oct. 23, at 7 p.m.
- Saturday, Oct. 24, at 7 p.m.
- Sunday, Oct. 25, at 2 p.m.
All three shows take place at Newman Elementary School Auditorium.
