Paris Group Theatre kicks off its 2022-23 season Thursday with a love-song to the girl-groups of the ‘50s and ’60s, the Off-Broadway juke-box hit, “The Marvelous Wonderettes,” written and created by Roger Bean.
The musical traces the lives and loves of 4 highschool women with huge goals of careers in music. Act I is promenade night time, because the group sings a collection of traditional ’50s hits from “Lollipop” to “Lipstick on Your Collar.” Act II reunites the women at their 10 12 months class reunion as they relate the highs and lows of the previous decade of their lives and carry out songs from “It’s In His Kiss,” to “RESPECT.”
“‘The Marvelous Wonderettes’ takes all of the acquainted songs we all know and love from the golden age of the lady teams and revamps them,” mentioned Amy Burrows, the present’s director. “It’s the requirements all of us bear in mind however with new preparations, shut harmonies and difficult rhythms. These girls have achieved an amazing job.”
Alaina Downing, an expert opera singer, performs Suzy, and he or she says this music is among the many most difficult she has ever achieved.
“I can’t examine it to a Handel five-act opera, however these harmonies are very troublesome the rhythms from the ’60s are so funky,” she mentioned. “However this forged has been superior.”
Junior faculty drama teacher Robyn Huinzinga performs Missy, who says she will establish along with her character, who turns into a instructor.
“I’ve achieved plenty of musical theater,” she mentioned. “And this can be a troublesome present.”
Michelle Hobbs says her character, Cindy Lou, adjustments essentially the most through the years and returns for the reunion a gentler, kinder model of her highschool self.
“All of those characters are modified,” she mentioned, “and it exhibits what they’ve change into and are nonetheless going via.”
Sam Griffin performs Betty Jean, the tom-boy of the group.
“My character has plenty of vitality, leaping off the stage and doing cartwheels,” she mentioned. “This present has pushed all of us.”
The play opens Thursday at 7:30 p.m., one week later than initially deliberate, on account of a number of diseases among the many forged and crew, together with Covid-19.
Burrow calls the rehearsals a “collaborative course of, with every of the forged providing their abilities to the manufacturing.”
“Alaina is our musical director in addition to being PCT’s co-artistic director. Robyn has provided technical assist and choreography and all these girls have introduced their singing abilities and their widespread sense and their vitality,” she mentioned. “I’m blessed with this forged, and Paris is blessed to have so many proficient performers.”
“This musical, apart from the difficult music, is stuffed with music from starting to finish,” she added. “There are 30 songs on this manufacturing; the forged is onstage the entire time with no breaks. That’s plenty of leisure.”
Performances are set for 7:30 p.m., Thursday, Friday and Saturday and a couple of:30 p.m. on Sunday, with further performances set for 7:30 p.m., Aug. 18, 19 and 20.
Info on ticket costs and availability will be discovered at pctonstage.com or by calling 903-784-0259.
