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Dover Sherborn High School Drama will present “Chicago” at the Mudge Auditorium from March 14 – 16, featuring its largest high school cast ever with 68 students.
"Chicago" is a darkly satirical, razzle-dazzling musical set to the backdrop of prohibition-era Chicago. The show has its origins in real-life, high-profile crimes, criminals and trials of the 1920s. Maurine Dallas Watkins, a columnist at the time, shared these stories with the public, and her columns were so popular that she chose to use the material for a play. "Chicago: A Musical Vaudeville" debuted on June 3, 1975, at the 46th Street Theatre and ran through August 1977 for a total of 936 performances. It received mixed reviews as some of the audience was uncomfortable with the show’s tendency to drop the fourth wall (that is when actors speak directly to the audience).
The show came back to Broadway in 1996 and was renamed: “Chicago: The Musical.” Opening on November 14, 1996 at the Richard Rodgers Theatre, it was a huge hit - even garnering six Tony Awards, more than any other revival in Broadway history at the time. The show’s success led to a 2002 film with Catherine Zeta Jones (Velma), Catherine Zellweger (Roxie), Richard Gere (Billy), and Queen Latifah (Mama), which collected six Academy Awards, including Best Picture. The second-longest running Broadway show ever, "Chicago" can still be seen today at the Ambassador Theatre in the heart of Times Square. With more than 8,000 performances to date, audiences are still thrilled to see it.
“I had the amazing opportunity to see 'Chicago' on Broadway this summer and it immediately became one of my favorite musicals,” said Ben Hodson Walker, one of the seniors in the show and a drama officer. “The jazz, the Fosse-style dancing, the razzle-dazzle! To get the opportunity to play the iconic role of Billy Flynn, the smooth-talking, manipulative lawyer, alongside such a talented and fun cast is truly an honor.”
Reserved seating and general admission tickets will soon be available on www.ticketstage.com.
