Williamsville sisters’ plays are dramatic fundraisers
Williamsville East High teens have raised $5,000 for Ronald McDonald House
Brittney and Monisha Bhayana, two teenage Amherst sisters, love theater and putting on a show.
Unlike other youths with similar passions, the Bhayana sisters managed to have their productions performed at the University at Buffalo’s Center for the Arts and, simultaneously, make it a charitable event. Over the past six years, their shows have helped raise $5,000 for the Ronald McDonald House at 780 W. Ferry St.
The girls had an early connection to Ronald McDonald House, according to their mother, Brenda, who said her sister was a temporary resident there while their father and the girl’s grandfather, Paul Dries, was being treated for cancer at Roswell Park Cancer Institute.
Soon after Brenda Bhayana and the girl’s father, Dr. Ranjan Bhayana, decided to get the girls involved in local theater as a way to keep them busy over the summer, the marriage between the fledgling Bhayana Theatre Group and Ronald McDonald House was born.
Monisha, 16, and Brittney, 15, were 10 and 9 years old, respectively.
“It started in the basement of our house. They decided to have just family at the time, and a couple of friends, said Brenda Bhayana, about a half-hour before the girls and their troupe took the stage Tuesday. “There were like 15 people. They had such a great turnout, they decided to move it to the backyard, and it just kind of grew from there.”
Performing in the backyard was dicey, Brenda Bhayana explained, especially when it rained. She assumed last year’s production would be the last.
“But they turned around the next day and said: ‘You know, mom, we love it so much. Is there a way we can try to make more money where we can have it someplace where people will take us seriously?’ And, so, they did,” she said.
To raise the funds to pay for the use of the UB’s theater, the girls, both students at Williamsville East High School, held occasional garage sales, sold chocolates and even performed giftwrapping services at Christmastime. They also collected whatever spare change they could.
“We contacted [UB], and they were able to give us the nonprofit rate [for renting the theater] . . . ” said their mom.
Brittney and Monisha said they both write their own scripts, direct and act in the productions, along with five other friends and their brother, Rajesh, 12.
“Our first [play] was a murder mystery,” said Brittney. “It was a bit more juvenile. I was only in fourth grade then.”
“It was about . . . little kid detectives and them solving cases. For the next ones, we stayed with the murder mystery theme, but then we kind of went on this reality show thing where we did one based on ‘Survivor,’ and one based on ‘The Apprentice.’ Now that we’re older, we can do more mature things with the murder mystery [theme],” Brittney added.
Tuesday’s production, titled “Until Death Do Us Part,” was a two-act play in the murder mystery vein about a young woman’s engagement to a shady country club owner. Mostly comedic, with a dash of drama and even a bit of singing and dancing, it played to an audience of about 100 guests, including Sally S. Vincent, executive director of Ronald McDonald House, and Ellen Haley, house manager of the facility.
“We are 100 percent supported by the general public, so if it wasn’t for these kinds of things — and these kids do so much to help us — we are eternally grateful for families like the Bhayana family,” said Haley.
