The Lehighton Area High School Drama Club will present "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying" with showings on Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. in the high school auditorium.

"It's not every year a high school director is given a cast with a number of solid, talented men," drama club adviser Jessica Schafer. "This show is one that can't really be done unless you have that, and this year, we do. I felt that this year was an excellent time to take advantage of that opportunity. At the same time, it offers a lot of opportunities for our female cast, so it works well for everyone."The musical follows J. Pierrpeont Finch's (Antonio Lorenzo) climb up the 1960s corporate ladder from window washer to corporate executive. Throughout the musical, Finch uses a book called "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying" (voiced by Michael Bongiorno) to advise him on the easiest path to rise to the top of the company.He encounters many characters along the way including his hard-nosed boss J.B. Biggley (John DeMatte) who reveals a soft side for knitting and the company's new, attractive secretary Hedy LaRue (Channel Baez). While all the men swoon over Hedy, personnel manager Bert Bratt (Calvin Maholick) warns of the dangers of itemizing women in the workplace.Meanwhile, marriage-minded secretary Rosemary Pilkington (Kira Williams) has set her eyes on Finch as a potential husband and enlists the help of her secretary friend Smitty (Eliza Asmann) to help win his affection. Finch first works his way up through the mailroom, led by Twimble (Dylan Coffin). However, when fellow mailroom worker and nephew-of-the-boss Bud Frump (Todd Schaeffer) becomes jealous, he tries to stop Finch's rise in the company at all costs.The rest of the musical is filled with an array of other zany characters including no-nonsense secretary Miss Jones (Madison DeLuca), Miss Krumholtz (Emily Haberman), scrubwomen (Savana Serfass and Kylie Kresge), sleazy businessman Gatch (Kyran Brobst), Chairman of the Board Wally Womper (Evan Solt), Tackaberry (Ethan Malkowicz), Ovington (Peyton Smith), Peterson (Daniel Devitt), Johnson (Miguel Gonzalez), company policeman (Vinson Brock), Wickette Girls (Bethany Evans and Lucy Taylor) and various other secretaries (Payge Louchart, Amy Williamson, Justine Nidlund, Jennifer Dobrowski, and Hannah Schappell).Auditions were the week before Christmas and rehearsals began in January."Although there are some large roles in this show, 'How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying' is also very much an ensemble piece," Schafer said. "My hope is that the students have seen how valuable each member's contribution to the ensemble really is."The musical also features a live orchestra with both student and community musicians under the direction of Bryan Buffington.Stage crew, lighting and sound are under the supervision of Cody Schuller, who helped design and build the set along with Michael Reenock.Ticket are $10 for adults and $5 for students and will be available at the door. Seating is general admission and doors open at 6:30 p.m.