QU Theater Update…”MEDEA” Opens Tonight! February 27, 2008

As a student at Quinnipiac University I feel the need to report on theater close to home: our school’s theatre department!

I am a theatre studies minor at Quinnipiac, and I love it very much. The professors are excellent, and the plays put on by the faculty are always wonderful.

I had the pleasure of being in two shows last year, and I loved every minute of it. This year I decided to take a break from doing the plays and be an audience member. While I like being an audience member, I must admit, I miss being on stage!

Today marks the opening night of what I think is a groundbreaking play at Quinnipiac. New professor to campus Kelly Morgan (pictured at left) is directing Euripides‘ “Medea” on the Long Wharf Theatre Mainstage in New Haven, CT.

Now you may ask, why is this so groundbreaking?

Here’s why.

For the past few years I have been at Quinnipiac, I have been to plays QU has produced at the Long Wharf Theatre, and they’ve been amazing. But they’ve always been on Stage II , which is the smaller theatre at Long Wharf. While this theatre is actually gorgeous and cozy enough for a small QU audience, now certain plays will be in a larger theatre space and actors will get to work with bigger audiences. I think this is amazing!

What I have also recently learned through the Quinnipiac website is that Quinnipiac actually made an official five-year agreement with the Long Wharf Theatre this past Monday.

According to the website, Quinnipiac will produce 3-4 productions per year at this prestiged theatre AND the university is allowed to used the technical shops backstage!

With our newly created Theater major, this will also help the theater majors (and well, minors too) to immerse themselves in theater through working on professional stages.

The play opening tonight revolves around the self-titled character, Medea. It is a Greek tragedy about her jealousy and revenge because she was betrayed by her husband.

This sounds exciting! But there are a few other great twists to add to the play too:

Kelly Morgan is taking a different twist on the show by incorporating sign language into the play. According to the Quinnipiac website, this is an “aspect of the cultural clashes between deaf and hearing cultures.”

Another exciting twist is the addition of professional actors in the play to the QU students already in the show.

Mary Vreeland is playing the title role of Medea. She is a professional deaf actress who’s performed in “Children of a Lesser God” on Broadway and a national tour, and has appeared in the CBS TV movie “Have You Tried Talking to Patty?“

Here’s when the play will be performing this week:

Wednesday Feb. 27th: 8pm

Thursday Feb. 28th: 8pm

Friday Feb. 29th: 8pm

Saturday March 1: 8pm

Saturday March 2: 2pm

Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students and seniors. If you’d like to reserve tickets to the show you can call (203) 582-3500….or you can buy your tickets at the door.

If you’re in the tri-state area this is definitely a play you don’t want to miss out on!

Fellow Bloggers: Would you be interested in seeing this show?

For more of an understanding on what “Medea” is about, here’s a clip from Virginia Commonwealth University’s production of the show that actually starred Mary as well…This video is a behind-the-scenes look at THEIR show and how sign language is incorporated.

Goodbye, The Color Purple… February 24, 2008

 

Yes, that is correct.

Tonight we all bid adieu to “The Color Purple” on Broadway.  It had its’ last performance tonight at 7:30pm at the Broadway Theatre.

According to Playbill.com, the show ran 30 previews and 910 performances. Wow.

The play opened in late 2005… I remember this as I was just going off to college by the end of that year.

“American Idol” winner Fantasia starred in the leading role of Celie for quite awhile. I remember hearing about what a great job she did in that role.

 Bloggers: Did any of you see the show? If so, what did you think of it? If not, did you want to see it?

I did want to see it, but I did choose to see other plays the past few years over that play. So it wasn’t a number one pick of mine. But the show seemed to look great overall!

The play is based on a Pulitizer Prize novel by Alice Walker about an African-American girl who learns to love herself and the others around her.

“The Color Purple” won 11 Tony’s in 2006!

There’s also a current national tour of the show.

While I’m sad to see the show leave Broadway, we must always remember the saying “Everytime a door closes, another one opens.”

“Shrek: The Musical!” will open at the same theatre November 8th.

While these are two COMPLETELY different shows…Both I feel are shows that are entertaining and have had and will have  great runs!

To end my post tonight, here’s Fantasia singing the song “I’m Here” from the show! Enjoy!

Tracy Turnblad is going on a REAL TV dance show! February 23, 2008

 

Well, not actually Tracy Turnblad.

But close!

The Broadway star that originated the role, Marissa Janet Winokur (pictured above) is set to star in the newest season of “Dancing With the Stars.” According to Broadway.com, the show will start airing on ABC March 17th.

This woman is TALENTED. I remember hearing about her in “Hairspray” and how wonderful she was playing the role of Tracy. When I saw the play on Broadway, I unfortunately didn’t get to see her, but I remember the girl who played Tracy then was great too!

She has been on various movies and TV shows and has graced the Broadway stage several times before her big leading role.  In the past few years you may have recognized her in the ABC Family movie “Beautiful Girl.“

On “Dancing With the Stars”, she will be paired with dancer Tony Dovolani, who last season was paired with actress Jane Seymour. 

I’m very excited to see how this season of the show shapes up. Who knows, maybe an amazingly talented Broadway actress could take the win for her dancing skills! Who knows? We shall see.

If you’d like a refresher on Winokur, here she is with her “Hairspray” cast singing “Without Love”!

Some Enchanted Evening…You will head to Broadway! February 22, 2008

 

Just now I found on Broadway.com a video of a familiar Broadway star cutting off her hair for a role.

This is something that is very typical when playing certain characters in a play or even a movie. For certain time periods a show takes place in, the character needs to match with the time period, or else really, they will not “fit” with the role.

I saw Kelli O’Hara (pictured left) in this wonderful Broadway show about 7 years ago called “Sweet Smell of Success.” I remember her being a beautiful girl and a very talented actress. I also remember her LONGER hair!

Well, she’s certainly been having a good Broadway run. She was just in the show “Light in the Piazza,” and now she’s about to star in the first Broadway revival EVER of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s  “South Pacific.” Wow! You go girl!

I could actually see her in the leading role of Nellie, too. That play is phenominal. I’ve watched the movie before, but I’m sure the play is just, if not better! The songs are gorgeous, some of my favorites are “Some Enchanted Evening,” “Bali H’ai“, and “I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Out of My Hair.” 

I didn’t even realize until tonight that this play is coming back to Broadway. This is another musical that has gone from a play to a movie and now a revival play back on Broadway. However, this one I’m excited for.

Also joining the cast for this revival are Paulo Szot as Emile de Becque, Matthew Morrison as the role of Lt. Joseph Cable, Danny Burstein as Luther Billis, Loretta Ables Sayre as Bloody Mary  and much more.

If you want to see this revival, it will be at the Vivian Beaumont Theatre on Broadway. The show will have it’s official opening night on April 3rd.

Bloggers- would you be interested in seeing this revival? I think it would be a great addition to Broadway’s current mix of movie-made-musicals. Classic shows are great…But as I’ve said before and I’m sticking to this, I still would love to see more fresh material on Broadway.

And to refresh your minds on “South Pacific…” here’s a clip from the movie!

And to refresh your minds on who Kelli O’Hara is…here’s a clip of her singing the song “Tonight” from the show “West Side Story!”

Spring Awakening..SUNDAES! February 19, 2008

I HAD to post this, because hey, theater + ice cream = LOVE!

As from this article on Broadway.com, the play “Spring Awakening” now has its own Sundae, made by the famous frrrozen hot chocolate makers of Serendipity3 in NYC. If any of you have NOT been to Serendipity 3 yet, PLEASE go to the city and experience this place. My aunt lives by this delectable restaurant and I used to head there for frrozen hot chocolates after a yummy dinner at California Pizza Kitchen next door.

The sundae is topped with whipped cream, raspberry sauce, strawberries and licorice..

YUM!

Here’s a picture of the cast with their new sundaes!

And here’s the cast singing “The B**** of Living” !

Now HERE’S a Fresh Musical…Hot off the Presses! February 18, 2008

 

Looking on Playbill today I came across this article about a reading for a new musical that may possibly be on Broadway some day.

The name of this musical? “Monsters!“

“Monsters?”

When I think of a monster, I automatically think of the ones that used to scare me in my dreams as a little girl. Those big, scary things that would chase you around until you woke up. But sadly no, this musical does not cover those types of monsters.

THIS musical covers people-monsters. People that make our lives a living hell. People out to get us.

According to Playbill.com, this new musical revolves around a newly-turned 40 year old single woman named Samantha. She’s a successful woman powerhouse- working on Wall Street in Manhattan to pay the bills (which hey, is not so bad!). After her 40th birthday though, she decides she’s unsatisfied with her life and wants to explore the world a little more. When she informs her mother of the news, her mother objects and tries to make her stay. But Samantha does not back down and begins her voyage to find herself.

“Monsters’” book and lyrics are written by Gail Phaneuf and its’ music and lyrics are written by Ernie Lijoi.

The scheduled reading of the play is today in Manhattan.

To me, this play sounds intriguing and could be worth checking out. As I have been saying in earlier posts, Broadway needs some new material to spicen up the area a bit more. Maybe this is the ticket? Who knows…we’ll wait and see. But I’ll tell you one thing… We’ve seen plays before where the man tries to find himself. To have a play about a woman trying to find herself would be a great play to see on Broadway…a twist on an old technique.

Bloggers: I pose a question to you. If this musical were to premiere on Broadway, would you go see it? Why/why not? I’m very interested in your responses.

If you want to learn more about this show feel free to check out their website!

To my right is a picture of the current cast.

And here’s a video clip I found of a scene from this new musical!

Shrek…the Musical February 17, 2008

As I mentioned in an earlier post, there has been a trend of movies turning into musicals on Broadway. This upcoming musical marks another example: “Shrek“.

“Shrek!” The movie many children AND adults have come to know and love. There’s even a “Shrek” 2 and 3.

An article on Broadway.com announced that stars Sutton Foster, Christopher Sieber and Kecia Lewis-Evans have joined the cast already.

Foster is signed up to play Princess Fiona, Sieber will play Lord Farquaad and Lewis-Evans will play the Dragon.

While previews for the play begin on November 8th, the show will officially open December 14th at the Broadway Theatre.

Several roles including Shrek and the Donkey haven’t been cast yet…So we’ll see what happens.

Now this is a show that, compared to other movie-musicals, may fare well on Broadway. The story is very cute and has a wonderful story line. I am confident already in the decision of bringing Foster and Sieber to the cast…I’m not sure about the other actress because I haven’t seen her in any shows yet. I am curious to hear what types of songs will be written for the show. I am also curious to know how the scenes will be played out. But again, we will see about all of this in due time.

To learn more about the upcoming show, you can check out their website. And for a refresher on the movie, here’s a clip!

V-DAY 2008 February 15, 2008

Valentine’s Day has come and gone yet again.

Hopefully you all had a great time spending it with people you love, whether it be family, friends or significant others.

But Valentine’s Day isn’t just about the cards, candy and lovey-dovey-ness.

It’s about loving others you don’t necessarily know. It’s also about loving yourself.

This year marks the 10 year anniversary of V-DAY:

V-DAY is a day which revolves around the love of women & their bodies. It’s a day where we reach out to others to help stop women’s and girl’s violence. 10 years ago, it all started with a show created by Eve Ensler called “The Vagina Monologues”.

When I first saw the billboard for this play in New York City, it must have been at least 10 years ago when it started. I looked up and remembered thinking to myself, “WHY is there a show, in New York City, about VAGINAS?! What were they doing in there? Who acts in it?” I remember having many questions about it, I was and still am a very curious person.

When I was a freshman here at Quinnipiac, I found a flyer about auditions for this play. So I tried out and lo and behold, I got into a few scenes! I was so excited.

I found out this play is more than just talking about vaginas. It is one of the most empowering, vibrant, quirky, sad yet also hilarious plays I’ve ever been a part of.

Here’s how the play goes down:

There are several monologues obviously. But these monologues range from many different types of women…including old Jewish women…to young British women…to women in the Middle East.

Ensler conducted interviews with TONS of people all around the world, including sex workers! She knows her stuff.

There are also scenes where several girls speak on perspectives such as getting your period for the first time (Ladies- you know when you first got yours QUITE well…!) and ones dealing with pressures such as being transgender.

I was in the play for two years in a row. Freshman year I was only in the scenes, but sophomore year, I had a monologue, called “I Was There In The Room.” This is a monologue that deals with the realities of childbirth. The monologue is so very detailed as the character takes you inside her vagina as her new child pushes through her “tunnel.” It was a beautiful monologue to perform.

I bring this play up today specifically not only because of it’s Valentine’s Day significance, but because this year, as the 10 year mark of this important show has come to pass, Quinnipiac University did not have their own V-DAY this year.

This saddened me. But I KNOW this tradition needs to and WILL live on.

Below is a picture of me and my co-host, Sarah, from last year’s production!

V-DAY needs to be spread to even more colleges that have never heard of it. Colleges all across the US sign up to perform this on or around Valentine’s Day.

So to the bloggers out there- have you seen a production of “The Vagina Monologues?” What’s your favorite monologue?

I say this with pride: I’m proud to have a vagina!

To end this post, I found my favorite monologue from the show, and I KNOW you’ll enjoy it too. Here’s a clip from a Binghamton University production:

This is Nothing to “BLAH BLAH BLAH” About! February 11, 2008

“Spring Awakening” has had a very good year.

First off, they have won 8, I repeat, EIGHT Tony awards including Best Musical!

Today I heard the news from Playbill: they snatched the Grammy for Best Musical Show Album!

If you have not heard this album, PLEASE GO CHECK IT OUT!

The music is fresh and intriguing, and by that I mean it’s not your average “musical” music.

This show is an adaption of an 1891 Frank Wedekind play. The play originally had very questionable and risky material and was banned several times after it’s premiere in Germany. The stories are about teenagers- revolving around topics such as masturbation, suicide, sex and abortion.

Duncan Sheik and Steven Sater revisited the play and opened a musical version of it in 2006 Off-Broadway. By the end of 2006, it had gained so much popularity it opened at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre.

I personally haven’t gotten to see the play myself, but my brother constantly has told me how wonderful it is. He got to see both versions. From what I hear, the cast is young, new, energetic talent.

For now, I have the soundtrack. And as I said, the songs are wonderful. The songs are very different from one another; some are very rock-ish and some are full of rich melody and piano.

Some of my favorite tunes on the soundtrack are “Totally F***ed,” “The Guilty Ones,” “Don’t Do Sadness/Blue Wind,” and “The B**** of Living.”

Fellow bloggers- have you heard the soundtrack? If so, what’s your favorite song on the soundtrack? If not, go check out the music!

If you’d like to learn more about the show, here’s a TV News Package one of my very good friends Blake Hayes did for a Comcast show about it!

The Radio Show I’ve Been Discussing…. February 11, 2008

As you may or may not have seen, I have been discussing on most of my posts the radio show I am a part of.

My radio show, along with my co-host, Sarah, is called Give My Regards to Broadway.

If you’re in the New Haven area, tune in on 98.1 FM and if you’re outside the CT area log onto WQAQ.com.

We discuss theater news and play showtunes…. You may hear some discussions you might have seen on this blog!

Our show this semester will be on Fridays from 10am-12pm.

I hope you fellow theatre bloggers can tune in… we’d love to hear some great discussion!