Posting Date: September 25, 2009
“A Grand Night for Singing” features the best of Rodgers and Hammerstein
By Jonquil Harris |
Kennesaw State University’s Music Theater Ensemble will present the first cabaret performance in the new Black Box Theater, “A Grand Night for Singing,” on Oct. 9 and 10 at 8 p.m. Directed by Associate Professor of Theatre and Performance Studies Dean Adams and Associate Professor of Opera and Musical Theater Russell Young, this performance will be a revue of the songs of Broadway by composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist Oscar Hammerstein.
A revue is a type of multi-act in theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance and sketches. “A Grand Night for Singing” is described by Young as “an arrangement of some of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s best love tunes. It is a revue about love as they saw it through their musicals.”
The audience will be treated to selections such as “I Have Dreamed” from “The King and I,” which tells the story of the blossoming love between characters Lun Tha and Tuptim as they plan to escape from the king’s palace. “If I Loved You” from “Carousel” displays two shy-birds who are hesitant about displaying their love for one another. The revue will also feature works from well-known hits such as “South Pacific” and, most nota, “Oklahoma!” which is notably one of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s successful partnerships in American musical theater.
Young believes Rodgers and Hammerstein’s works have a certain timelessness that is portrayed through their music and lyrics. The performers as well as the audience will be treated to music of a different style and period throughout the revue. “It will have a broad appeal to the older audience who will know these tunes and will be glad they are hearing them again, as well as to a younger audience who will find them refreshing and a good change to what they would normally listen to,” says Young.
For more information or to purchase tickets, please visit the KSU Box Office or call 770-423-6650.