Fans of song and dance, drama and comedy and live entertainment are in luck: U of O Theatre Department is putting on "University Cabaret," a dessert theatre cabaret show, from Wednesday, February 22, through Saturday, February 25, at 7:00 in the Black Box Theater in Walton Fine Arts Center.
"Our University Cabaret includes everything from ballet, modern dance, solos, duets, and scenes, to large-scale group numbers in the production," said Ozarks Theatre Professor Bruce Brown. "It’s always a challenge to pick a play for our winter show that can be rehearsed and built in the very limited time we have for this production slot. I wanted to do something that would encourage more students from across disciplines to participate and hopefully some faculty and staff from the university as well. So, I chose to write and compile a script surrounding different musical numbers and scenes from Tony Award-winning musicals and Broadway shows. My vision for this production was that we would have a variety of acts to go along with a few company pieces, and luckily, that is exactly what we got. We have a huge cast of talented individuals from several majors, including a few staff members from campus as well as a theatre alumna and other members from the Clarksville community."
Jacqueline Jurcik, a senior theatre student from Russellville who is in the show, agrees. "How I’ve been explaining it to a lot of people is to say it’s basically a talent show on steroids," she said with a laugh. "It’s a very organized showcase that combines a company with individual acts. And it’s not just theatre majors. I’m the only female theatre major in the cabaret actually; it’s more a cool coming together of people to have fun and entertain everybody who attends."
Jurcik will appear in the show’s group numbers and is doing a scene with fellow thespian Jordan Martin called "This Hurts" from "Almost, Maine."
She said guests can dine on cheesecake as well as coffee and hot chocolate before the show, and that the proceeds from the ticket and dessert sales will help the theater program cover some of the costs of its recent trip to the Arkansas State Theatre Festival, where it won numerous awards.
"I hope the show will get more students involved with the theatre program," says Professor Brown. "I would love to get some of those talented, undecided majors to consider theatre as a major or even a minor."
Jurcik stressed the limited seating in the venue. "Remember: tickets pre-sell," she said, "and actually we’re hoping to do a few little public teasers - I won’t give anything away, but we’re trying to get the public involved and wanting to come. But the seats are very limited and once we start pre-selling them, the show might very well get sold out. Once they’re gone, they’re gone!"
Brown agreed. "Please do not wait until the last minute to attempt to purchase your ticket! Go online and buy it early so that you are sure to get a seat. And definitely tell your friends to not miss this show. We are only 5 rehearsals in, and already, the company numbers are looking and sounding amazing. Please note that the show is free to faculty, staff, and students at the box office with their University of the Ozarks identification, but we cannot guarantee a seat unless a ticket is purchased. There are only 84 seats per show, so don’t wait to buy your tickets."
Tickets go on sale on February 1, 2012 starting just after 8:00 a.m., and may be purchased online at http://www.ozarks.edu/theatre/schedule.aspx.
Topics: Theatre