Omigosh you guys! This summer, DreamWrights will be showcasing its teen musical, Legally Blonde, complete with a Greek chorus. But, this is definitely not a Greek chorus like anything Aristotle would recognize. This Greek Chorus will be made up of three leading sorority girls: Margot, Serena, and Pilar, who will be on stage throughout the entire show, and only visible to the main character, Elle Woods. Director Nic Ecker explains, “Traditionally these characters appear on stage briefly throughout the musical. For this production, I’m going to change things up by having them interacting with the action on stage, with their sole purpose to help Elle become a lawyer. It’s an interesting concept that, to my knowledge, hasn’t been done in this way before. I am looking forward to these ancient Greek ideas coming to life in this very modern musical.”
In addition to the Greek chorus, Ecker has a wonderful vision for the production. He muses, “My overall concept for this show is to portray Elle in relationship to the changing of the seasons. Elle goes through a metamorphosis during the show, going from Valley Girl to Lawyer, with the help of her friends and classmates.” Ecker’s idea for the show, as well as Elle’s journey, is to begin Act 1 in the fall and transition to the winter, when things aren’t going Elle’s way. At the start of Act 2, Elle begins to blossom as her own person and as an attorney, representing the spring season. By the end of the musical, Elle will have finished her transformation and became her own independent woman, which will have the celebratory feel of summer.
One of the most contagious themes of the production is that if there’s a will, there’s a way. Ecker hopes his audiences take away a sense of empowerment; that anything is possible if you set your mind to it. Ecker is a believer, “No matter what anyone tells you or how much they want to see you fail, if you believe in yourself, that’s all that matters. These themes are all set to catchy, upbeat music, which is never a bad thing!”
This production will be Ecker’s second DreamWrights production as Director. Being a man and not having much experience with sororities or law students, Ecker is rising to the challenge with excitement and enthusiasm. He promises, “Legally Blonde is a fun and upbeat production that has great music and a good message. Since this show was created no more than 10 years ago, everything is very modern and nothing feels outdated. We have a large cast of very talented teens who are excited and eager to create a fantastic production.”
Besides, with a cast ratio of 19 females to 7 males, there is plenty of girl power around to provide Ecker with the burst of estrogen he might need at any given moment. In addition, Ecker says that it helps that many of the cast already know each other. “To my surprise, a lot of the cast is actually from the Dallastown area, all going to school together. I see it as a benefit that almost ten of the cast members are already great friends.”
Director Nic Ecker is recently graduated from Shippensburg University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Interdisciplinary Arts and minors in Music, Theatre, and Communications/Journalism. Ecker says that directing theatre has become a passion of his and he hopes to continue directing in the future.
This musical production of Legally Blonde opens Thursday, June 23 at 6:30pm and runs June 23, 24 and 25 at 6:30 pm and June 25 and 26 at 2:30 pm. Tickets may be purchased online at www.dreamwrights.org or by calling 717-848-8623. Seats cost $10 for general, $14 for reserved.
Recent Comments