The University of Rhode Island Lyric Stage Workshop opened its first show with “Little Women: The Broadway Musical,” drawing audiences with two performances focused on showcasing musical talent on Thursday, Nov. 13, and Sunday.
The show was chosen to highlight two URI student voices, fourth-year Morgan Garcia and fourth-year Chelsea Gartland, who both played Jo March, according to Rachel Hanauer, the director for the musical. Garcia performed the role in Thursday’s show, and Gartland performed in Sunday’s show. Their voices also blended with the score, played by the pit orchestra, made up of 12 members from the URI Symphony Orchestra.
“Little Women” is a timeless tale about four sisters growing up in New England and grappling with issues, according to Hanauer. Through Jo’s character, she watches her sisters grow up as they take different roles, while she follows her passion for writing. When one of her sisters passes away, the theme changes from chasing dreams to handling grief.
“It felt like a really good time to do something that wasn’t so politically charged, but was just a beautiful story that can bring people together,” Hanauer said.
Hanauer said she cast the show in May and gave the students the music to memorize over the summer because they only had eight weeks to stage the show. The cast started rehearsals in September, three times a week on Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 3 p.m. to 4:15 p.m. Even though it was a small time block, the students were prepared and eager each day to practice, according to Hanauer.
The pit orchestra was conducted by a URI graduate student and one of the music directors, Ryan Cox, according to Hanauer. With help from Michael Kelly, the second music director, they cast the pit orchestra and rehearsed separately. Then, the cast and orchestra rehearsed together during tech week.
“The story spoke for itself,” Hanauer said. “The students really lived those characters on stage.”
Preparing for the role of Jo March required intense character study, according to Garcia. She watched different adaptations of “Little Women” and added that experience to put herself into the character. Then, she memorized the lines by recording and talking through them while walking to classes.
The biggest step in the creative process was getting to know the cast, according to Garcia. This included gaining chemistry with her peers to help every scene flow. One cast member Garcia worked with was Gartland, as they aimed to make the character their own by feeding off each other’s energy.
“I am Jo with the self-doubt that she feels in the show with her stories and writing,” Garcia said. “I [also] have siblings, [so] I understand the sibling rivalry very well.”
For the amount of rehearsal time the cast had, the performances were strong, according to Vincent Grippo, a second-year student who played Laurie.
When it comes to acting, it’s about how you bring your character to life, according to Grippo. He said that Laurie’s limited awareness of others becomes clear in his interactions. When he proposes to Amy, he does not recognize that the decision affects Jo.
“[Preparing for a role is] all about repetition, yeah, but also it’s about the emotion,” Grippo said.
Playing Beth was a challenging goal, according to fourth-year Louise Joyce. Joyce said that she is outgoing, while Beth is reserved, making her personality the opposite of Joyce’s.
Beth also has a motherly sense among the sisters, according to Joyce. She quiets Jo’s fiery personality and sits and listens instead of jumping into conversations. Joyce took the time to read the book, watch the movie and see various productions to prepare.
“I just thought a lot about what it is to be someone who lives for the joy of others and observes for the reason of helping others,” Joyce said.
The music department’s next musical will be a one-act opera, “Computing Venus,” by the URI Opera Workshop in the spring semester.
