New spring production features pirates and Christmas
An all new musical adventure is coming to Union in spring 2016: “Captain Scrooge and the Curse of the Red-nosed Reindeer” will premiere in Woods Auditorium. Tryouts will be held November 2-3 where one and all are welcome to audition.
Written by Mike Mennard and directed by our new theater professor Brett Hadley, this musical adventure takes the Christmas classic, “A Christmas Carol” and gives it new life. Everyone is a pirate, including the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future.
The twist it that it follows Bob Cratchit being hunted down by the ghosts because he’s too nice to be a pirate. Another quirk is that no women are allowed on the ships, though the crew is made up almost entirely of women.
“It’s going to be a real, full-on pirate experience,” Mennard hints.
“Some may not make it out alive,” Hadley chimes in.
If this sounds like something you’d be interested in, auditions are taking place November 2-3 from 5:00-6:30 p.m. in Woods Auditorium. Simply bring yourself, deliver a prepared monologue at least one minute in length and sing a song of your choice.
When asked what one should expect if they land a part, both Mennard and Hadley have a lot to say.
“Terror, fear, stress, gray hairs and panic attacks,” Hadley lists jokingly.
Meanwhile, Mennard confides that “you gain a new family; every production is like taking on a temporary family. It’s really great.”
Both Mennard and Hadley make a great team. The two love to play off each other, joking around and complimenting each other’s strengths. It’s clear they work well together, and they have no problems explaining why.
Hadley says he appreciates the creative side of Mennard. “Mike always wears colorful hats and just eludes the pirate nature. He brings out the creative spirit, I get around him and I think ‘Ooh, I can do things’."
Mennard is just as complimentary when talking about Hadley. “He is super talented and I’m excited for the school to get to see that because he’s a new professor. It’s exciting for me because it’s a new, never-performed play.”
Mennard started writing the play three years ago, mixing together two things he loves: pirates and Ebenezer Scrooge. Now he’s seeing both brought to life on Union College’s stage.
Be sure to look out for tickets to go on sale in the spring. The thing they hope to see most on opening night?
“A crowd!” exclaimed Mennard.
Hadley concurs. “Please, let there be a crowd.”
The two are excited to be working together to bring this new production to Union College. They are hopeful it will help kick off a new era for the theater program here, with Hadley captaining his new crew into a successful, fun night.
Graci Escobar is a junior English major with an emphasis on speaking and writing. She loves cats, napping, reading, cuddling cats, browsing independently unpublished stories, binge-watching Netflix, and petting cats. Born and raised here in Lincoln, Graci would love to see the ocean more than seven times and hopes to one day hug every cat in the world.