This upcoming weekend begins the final Longwood University theatrical production of the year: The Musical of Musicals (the Musical!). This relatively modern show is – you guessed it – a musical which features music by Eric Rockwell and lyrics by Joeanne Bogart.
The musical is being directed by Keri Wormald, an acting coach from Richmond, Virginia who was invited to guest direct here at Longwood for the first time. Wormald held auditions for the show in late January and posted the official cast list in mid-February.
Parts in the show consist of a small ensemble and the lead actors, all of which are theatre majors: sophomore Haley Mizelle playing the role of “June,” freshman Garrett Reese playing “Billy,” junior Gabby Klatt as “Abby,” and Elton Bradley as “Jitter.”
“It is so nice to have someone outside of our department from the real world come in willing to give her techniques to us and trying to mold us into better actors” said Reese, on working with Wormald, “… It’s an eye-opener. She’s not trying to sugarcoat anything or make us feel good.”
The Musical of Musicals (the Musical!) is divided into five acts, but don’t worry, this melodramatic parody promises to not drag on quite like its title does. Each act is satirically set in the style of many well-known musical theatre composers from Rodgers & Hammerstein, Stephen Sondheim and Andrew Lloyd Webber to Jerry Herman, John Kander and Fred Ebb.
With the four leads of the show, each character represents a certain archetype including the ingénue: “June,” the hero: “Billy,” the matron: “Abby,” and of course, the villain: “Jitter.” Although the show is influenced by such large names in musical theatre, the plot is really quite simple: “I can’t pay my rent.”
However don’t feel as if these widely known shows should refrain you from attending the production because it is attended for all audiences. Despite the constant references to shows like Sweeney Todd, Hello, Dolly!, Phantom of the Opera and Chicago, the production captures both the theatrically inclined as well as non-theatre goers.
“If you like musical theatre, you’ll love it. If you don’t like musical theatre, you’ll still love it,” said Mizelle. “For the people who are not really into musical theatre, it’s kind of making fun of itself and musical theatre in general, so they’ll get a good laugh out of it.”
Longwood’s production of the musical has an overall goal of truly capturing the audience in the performance, as any other production would strive to. The difference is: they are taking it a step further by making it an immersive theatrical experience.
Bradley said, “This show relies on the audience. They’re basically the heartbeat behind it, and we are merely the limbs. This is musical theatre for the non-musical theatre person.”
The show opens this Thursday, April 14th at 7:00pm in the mainstage theatre in CSTAC and runs throughout the weekend as well as next weekend.
For more information and ticket sales contact the Longwood University Box Office at 434-395-2474 or visit them online at http://www.longwood.edu/tag/18642.htm
