Tony Award-winning 'A Chorus Line' runs through April 28 at Cape
Cape Henlopen High School Theatre Academy gears up for the second weekend of its production of Tony Award-winning musical, "A Chorus Line," with shows at 8 p.m., Friday and Saturday, April 26 and 27, and a Sunday matinee at 2 p.m., April 28.
"A Chorus Line," the sixth longest-running Broadway show ever, is set at the auditions for a Broadway show. As each hopeful takes his or her moment on the stage in front of the director and stage manager, the audience gets a glimpse into the dancer’s life, hopes and fears. “This isn’t a typical high school show,” said director Martha Pfeiffer. “I wanted a show to challenge the students and to give them the technical preparation for their futures. This is a powerful piece that shows off their acting chops. They’ve certainly risen to the occasion.”
Most of the cast agree that the dancing was the most challenging part of the show. “The music is very up-tempo, so there are many different things happening at once,” said senior Skye Harrell, who plays Sheila. In this musical about auditioning, senior Grace Hetfield feels that actually auditioning for the play was the most challenging part of the production process. Senior Ted D’Anna also noted the significance of the musical about auditioning for a musical: “It’s a weird thing to be ‘auditioning’ for the entire show, almost like a show within a show.”
“The audience is going to pick a favorite character, but then they’ll have to wait to the end of the show to find out if their character actually makes it into the chorus line,” said senior Taylor Capozolli.
The technical director, Derek Dutton, is using a Brechtian approach to the staging of the show: “There are no soft goods,” he says, like set pieces or even costumes. “As a result, I’ve been really focused on the sound for this show.” Dutton says the stage, including the backstage area, is open to the audience as it would be for an actual audition in a theater.
Tickets are $10 for students, senior citizens and Cape Henlopen High School staff, and $15 for adults. They will be available at the door.
