The UI Theatre Department hosted its preview showing of “Amelie The Musical” on Thursday Oct. 26. The preview ran smoothly in front of the show’s first live audience highlighting the amazing vocal performances of the cast and the live orchestra. The show will be running this Friday through Saturday from 7:30 – 9:30 p.m. and Sunday from 2 – 4 p.m. As well as three performances next weekend. Tickets are free for students, $25 for others and can be purchased online.
“Amelie the Musical” is set in France during the late 90’s and follows the story of Amelie, a French woman who’s happy with her quiet life. The show begins with the unfolding of Amelie’s childhood, where, after an unfortunate incident, her mother passes away leaving her father grief stricken and distraught.
A couple of years pass, and Amelie decides it’s time to leave home. Five years after leaving home, Amelie is a waitress at a café and is enjoying her life. This café is where we meet the rest of the ensemble. Suzanne, Georgette and Gina work with Amelie at the café, while Joseph, Hippolito and Philomene are regulars at the café.
On the night of the death of Princess Diana, Amelie finds a strange box in her apartment. Vowing to return it to its owner, Amelie decides to live a life of good deeds if she finds the owner of the box and he is happy that it is returned. The rest of the plot follows Amelie’s adventures while searching for the owner and details the good deeds and connections she makes along the way in this heartwarming and enchanting musical.
The UI Theatre department has outdone themselves once again, this time putting on a Broadway musical. While the entire cast’s vocals are very strong, Monica Evans’ Amelie and Ty Harrington’s Nino stand out amongst them all, bringing a fantastic presence to the stage. Even though it was his only appearance on-stage, Christian Reed’s Elton John is another stunning vocal performance and leaves the audience wanting more. The set for this show was very creative, with this being highlighted by the staircase-on-wheels that is used in many different ways throughout the show. The costume design was on point, especially the gnome costume used for the song “There’s No Place Like Gnome”.
Running in at a little over 2 hours, “Amelie The Musical” is another example of UI Theatre Departments mission to put students in top quality productions and is well worth your time.
Jack DeWitt can be reached at [email protected]