Drama, Music, and a Timeless Classic

Drama, Music, and a Timeless Classic

CIU Players Perform "Little Women"

Kyle Neal as Professor Fritz Bhaer, Emily Calder as Jo March, Bethany Stewart as Mrs. Kirk (Photo by CIU student photographer Alicia Heatherly)

CIU Players Perform “Little Women”

By Michael Lanier

CIU Student Writer

Hoke Auditorium was filled with laughter and emotion as the CIU Players presented their performance of “Little Women” in April. This musical adaption of the timeless novel brought life to the classic tale and it left the audience with an evening to remember.

The story of “Little Women focuses on Jo March and her three sisters in the late 19th century. Jo wants to become a famous writer, and she tries to stay as far away as possible from society's picture of an ideal woman. But as times change, and with her sisters and friends growing up around her, Jo realizes that she needs to find a balance between her passions and her reality. Through comedy and drama, Jo struggles to achieve that balance, finding virtues and making friends along the way.

“It was a lot of fun, and a lot of hard work,” said junior Emily Calder, who played the lead role of Jo March. “A lot of my best friends are in the cast, so it was a great way to end the semester.”

While the play was fun for audiences to watch, it offered just as much fun for the actors as they developed their characters on stage. Junior Alyssa Stewart played Marmee, the beloved mother of the four March sisters, a role to which Stewart fully applied herself.

“[Playing Marmee] I was thinking about my mom and channeling my emotions,” said Stewart, who added, comically, “It was kind of like looking forward to the future and hoping that my children are only a little bit like the March girls.”

The making and performing of Little Women was just as full of energy as the March sisters, and spirits were high behind the scenes as well as on stage.

“It's been a wild ride, but it's been a great production, and I've been proud to be a part of it,” said junior Kinsey Phillips, who directed the play.

The original choreography and the surprises in the plot kept the audience entertained and riveted as the story progressed.

“It was a surprising and well-directed play that kept me engaged from the beginning until the satisfying conclusion,” said senior Jonathan Shuffler.

“The CIU Players made us both laugh and cry with the ups and downs of the March sisters,” added freshman Natalie Slone. “It was a fun time.”

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