Set in the midst of The Civil War, hard times have hit many families in America, and the March family is no stranger to their share of difficulties. Yet, the four March sisters—Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy—find hope and happiness within their sisterhood. This story of coming of age, sisterly love and women’s empowerment has survived for 150 years. Add in a couple of musical numbers, an orchestra and some sick dance moves and Louisa May Alcott’s “Little Women” has come to life as a musical on the Shapiro Campus Center theater stage.
The tale is timeless, the songs are catchy and the characters are completely lovable—I was not disappointed by Brandeis’ rendition of this classic.
The highlight of the show was Elizabeth Hillard ’22 as Jo, the March sister who longs for adventure and cares not for society. Hillard was cast perfectly, and Jo is by no means an easy character to play. The sizable vocal range required for the part makes it very difficult for an actress to perform, with notes ranging all the way from A5 to E3. At the same time, the vocalist must be mindful of the inflection required on certain words that are either soft and delicate or powerful and dynamic. This is essential because, if done successfully, you allow the audience to truly feel how Jo feels in each scene. Not to mention that anyone playing Jo is following in the footsteps of the angel-voiced legend that is Sutton Foster—who is highly regarded in the musical theater industry.
Laurie Laurence, the heartthrob boy next door, played by Seth Wulf ’21 was equally fantastic. As soon as he came on stage, I was instantly smiling from his charm. He nailed the role, stealing the audience’s heart instantly and truly becoming the definition of a heartthrob. Though the number “Take A Chance On Me” had a few speed bumps, his performance reached its peak in the second act when he sang “The Most Amazing Thing” with Sophia Seufert ’22 as Amy March.
The casting was probably the best part of this production; the characters worked very well together, especially from a vocal point of view. In “Five Forever,” all four March sisters and Laurie harmonize beautifully. I also loved when Caroline Kriesen ’20, as Meg March, and Alex Ross ’22, as John Brooke, sang “More Than I Am” together. Their chemistry was evident, and their voices complemented one another very nicely.
However, there were some things I just could not for the life of me get past. For starters, everyone in Act I seemed to be running off the stage, like physically running, which creates a loud noise when you’re wearing character shoes and have the mics picking up every sound. To be honest, it made the play look sloppy. Though I understand that the characters may have been running to portray a youthful sense, there were other ways to achieve this aside from running.
Another thing I could not stand was when characters turned their back to the audience while singing. The set design didn’t help with this problem because it forced characters to turn their backs to walk up the stairs. I know I can’t expect a character to be facing the front the entire play. However, when you’re singing a song like “Here Alone” where a wife is lamenting about her husband being at war, you don’t turn your back to the audience while belting out crucial lines.
One final choice I did not enjoy was made by Director Rose Freudberg ’20 in her incorporation of four female speechless characters who appeared between scenes. The girls were added by Freudberg to incorporate a modern element to the play, since she initially thought the play was “dated and unrelatable,” as she described in the director’s note. The addition was meant to represent the four March girls in the world today reading the novel to show that the lessons in the play are still relevant now. However, this is superfluous; it is obvious that the lessons in the play are still relevant today. Personally, I believe if this play was outdated, it wouldn’t be a major motion picture being released later this month; it also wouldn’t be a part of the reading curriculum in high schools. This addition simply annoyed me on principle; however, my dislike of the change grew at the end of the song “Some Things Are Meant To Be.” This is one of the most emotional songs of the play, where Beth, played by Sophie Lee ’21, tells Jo it is okay to let her die. The scene brought me to tears—until these four random girls came out onto the stage with their hands outstretched for Beth bringing her into the wings to signify her death. It completely ruined the mood, and I felt a sense of whiplash.
Overall, I greatly enjoyed myself at the UTC’s performance of “Little Women.” The cast did an amazing job with the play, and their hard work was evident in the quality of show.
