4/24-5/4: Act 1 Concludes Season with “Singin’ in the Rain”
From left: Tommy Gray as Cosmo Brown, Maya Jean Marino Cappello as Kathy Selden, and Noah Schnabel as Don Lockwood in DeSales University’s Act 1 Production of “Singin’ in the Rain.” Photo by Jack Lerch.
Act 1 DeSales University Theatre is pleased to announce the final production of its 55th season will be the premiere of “Singin’ in the Rain.” The stage adaptation of the classic musical opens on Thursday, April 24, and runs until Sunday, May 4, on the Main Stage, the Marcon Theatre, of the Labuda Center for the Performing Arts.
Monday-Thursday, ticket prices are $34 for adults and $32 for students and seniors. Friday-Sunday, tickets are $38 for adults and $36 for students and seniors. There are two talkback performances with the cast: one on Tuesday, April 29, following the 9:45AM performance, and one after the 2PM performance on Sunday, April 27.
Following the Friday, May 2, performance, Act 1 is hosting an after-show party to celebrate the Golden Age of Hollywood with a raffle, popcorn, concession candy, and Shirley Temples.
Students who attend DeSales or any other Lehigh Valley college or university can purchase tickets for $8. Group discounts are available for all performances. Tickets may be purchased by calling the Labuda Center Box Office at 610-282-3192 or by visiting the website at tickets.desales.edu.
Harken back to a time in 1920s Hollywood when the “Jazz Singer” and talking pictures became all the rage, and silent film actors and actresses suddenly found themselves learning to enunciate for the camera.
Based on the 1952 MGM film, “Singin’ in the Rain” is the story of a movie studio and its leading actors, Don Lockwood and Lina Lamont, navigating the new talking picture technology. The stage adaptation is filled with the same broad comedy, wonderful dancing, often quoted lines, and famous songs of the era, including “You Were Meant for Me,” “Good Morning,” and the title song.
Recreating the film for the stage necessitated a collaboration among all three majors in the School of Performing Arts. In addition to the production being a dance-heavy show, the filmed portions fostered cooperation with students from the TV/film major. Filming occurred on location, as well as the University’s virtual production studio, a cutting-edge space, unique to the Lehigh Valley with the latest virtual production technology, which has been used on many Hollywood television shows and movies.
“’Singin’ in the Rain’ is one of the largest scope musicals we have ever done at Act 1,” said Anne Lewis, professor of theatre and director of the production. “The TV/film aspect, multiple scene locations, and the demanding choreography all converge to make this production unique and a lot of fun.”
Andrew Mannion, assistant professor of theatre, is the scenic designer, recreating the sound stages of early Hollywood, and Kevin Oleksy, the technical director, engineered the rain on stage for the title number. Guest artist Janus Stefanowicz is the costume designer and Eric T. Haugen, assistant professor and head of design, serves as lighting designer. Jonathan Cannon, sound supervisor, is the sound designer. Nancy Moser Collins Miles is the music director, and DeSales alumnus Stephen Casey is the choreographer.
For the video portions of the production, Michael Wagner, associate professor of TV/film, is the director of photography, and Stephen Furry, TV/film virtual production supervisor and theatre master electrician, was the key grip on all the films and ran the VPS.
Questions? tom.mcnamara@desales.edu