18 / matters magazine / fall 2026 vels at her friend’s ability to maintain Broadway shows and tours while continuing to direct at CHS and run a local business. Pettigrew’s return to Broadway has also changed the way the CHS program operates. After Benn retired, Keshner stepped in as co-choreog rapher for Mamma Mia!, a show in which she had performed on Broad way. She has since become co-director and co-choreographer, taking on more of the day-to-day work while Petti grew pursues outside opportunities. The arrangement has helped sustain the program Pettigrew and Benn built. Its designers, musicians, technicians and parent volunteers include people who remain involved long after their children graduate. Pettigrew’s own children have long since left CHS, but she continues to return. Her favorite production is Rag time, the 2015 show for which she and Benn won a Paper Mill Playhouse Rising Star Award for direction. She was particularly proud of the students’ ability to handle its demanding themes and music. For Pettigrew, the distance be tween Broadway and Columbia High School has never been as great as it might seem. Both have given her opportunities to collaborate, nurture talent and bring ambitious produc tions to life. Now, as her Broadway career enters another chapter, she continues to draw on the relation ships and experiences she built in both worlds. And with 26 CHS musicals behind her and a Broadway career still unfolding, Pettigrew has plenty of reasons to take a bow. Just don’t expect her to stay offstage for long. Adrianna Ahern Donat writes for Matters Magazine and works as a Re altor with Pollock Properties Group, where the drama is generally limited to multiple-offer situations. Marianna Daly, who has per formed in the musical for the past two years, describes the experience as one of the highlights of high school. “With her presence in the CHS mu sical, each performer has an oppor tunity to grow and shine.” The program also offers opportu nities for students whose interests lie beyond performing. Pettigrew and her team have developed senior lead ership positions including production assistants, student costume coordi nators, lighting designers, hair and makeup teams, dance captains, social- media coordinators and crew leads. “She cares about each and every student,” Keshner says, adding that Pettigrew “empowers our students at every level of the production.” Some years, 10 to 15 CHS stu dents have gone on to bachelor of fine arts programs. Alumni have made Broadway debuts and be come producers or other theater professionals. Pettigrew believes the discipline, collaboration and prob lem-solving required to produce a musical can serve students in almost any field. Pettigrew’s own career illustrates the importance of finding more than one way to make a living in the arts. She is a co-owner of Maplewood’s Studio 509, which grew out of a lifelong connection to dance and fitness. Her mother owned a fitness studio and Pettigrew began teaching classes at 15. She has been certified in the GYROTONIC® method for more than 20 years. When the opportunity arose to open Studio 509 with longtime business partner Guada Bas, she wel comed the chance to build a business that would allow her to continue pursuing theater opportunities. “I am so lucky and grateful to have Bethany as a thoughtful, generous and supportive business partner and long time friend,” Bas says. “We both love what we do and have a great time coming up with new, fun and creative ideas for Studio 509.” Bas’ flexibility has allowed Pettigrew to take on more professional theater work in recent years. Shubart, who is also a Studio 509 client, mar For Columbia High School's production of Ragtime, Pettigrew and Benn won a Paper Mill Playhouse Rising Star Award for direction.
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