Aaron Johnson – General Assignment Reporter
When freshman Brandon Brush was first cast as Bobby Strong in the play Urinetown: The Musical, he admitted to being nervous and intimidated at first. “I felt like there was a lot of pressure,” said Brush. “Being a freshman, I was intimidated at first. But I settled in just fine. Brush will play the male lead in the Southern Connecticut State University’s Theatre Department and the Crescent Players presentation of Urinetown: The Musical. Although it is a theater department show, many of the cast are in fact not theater majors.
“We have a lot of non-theater majors,” said Maggie McDonald, the stage manager for Urinetown: The Musical. “The Crescent Players made an audition banner and we tried to publicize a little bit and we just got some people who just showed up and were like ‘hey I’m interested in auditioning’. So we got a couple e-mails and people showed up so that was a lot of fun.”
Under the direction of Larry Nye, an associate professor in the theatre department, Urinetown: The Musical will have six performances between February 28th – March 9th all performances will be at the
John Lyman Center for Performing Arts. McDonald said that one of the best thing about being a stage manager is seeing the growth of the play from start to finish. “When your acting it’s really more about yourself and your partner in the scene so you don’t really see the growth,” she said. “But as a stage manager, you see it from auditions to the final product. So it’s pretty exciting.”
McDonald – a sophomore theatre major from Shelton – said that it is her first time being stage manager and that is has been a learning experience, but an experience that she has enjoyed. “It was interesting because I’ve never been a stage manager before,” said McDonald. “It was very different. I’m use to being on stage. But I know it’s going to be a different feeling because I’m going to be controlling the lights, the sound, giving everybody their cues. I’m in charge. It’s going to be a different feeling, but I’m excited about it.”
Although he has been acting for six years, Brush said that the best feeling is being able to be someone other than yourself. “It’s a really great feeling,” said Brush. “I really get into it. It’s nice, you kinda don’t feel like yourself for a little while.” Aside Brush, sophomore Shelby Derhovanesian was cast as the female lead, Hope Caldwell. Derhovanesian said that the part was a little difficult at first since she is so different from the character Hope. “This part has been completely different from what I’m use to,” said Derhovanesian.“Hope is really everything that I’m not. She’s not dumb, but she’s naive.”
Unlike her onstage counterpart, Derhovanesian said that she has been acting all her life and that being cast as the lead has its benefits and its challenges, including even fighting through nerves. “I personally get nervous. But it’s an adrenaline rush. I could just hang out on the stage,” she said, with a laugh. “As any lead a lot there is a lot of stuff to remember. You have to set an example for the rest of the cast.”
Greg Kotis and Mark Hollmann originally wrote the book, lyrics, and music for Urinetown: The Musical in 2001. The satirical comedy pokes fun at the legal system, capitalism, and corporate mismanagement, to just name a few things. Derhovanesian said that the one thing that she would like the audience to take away from the performance is that no winner comes from “lose-lose situations.” “I want the audience to understand,” said Derhovanesian. “That being in control of a ‘no win situation still means that you lose.”
