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Entertainment
The Battalion
Page 5 • Tuesday, March 9, 2004
More than 15 minutes of‘Fame’
MSC OPAS to host showings of award winning musical Fame
‘MusicaCs
Fame - The Musical
By Sarah Szuminski
THE BATTALION
As the adage says, everyone is entitled to 15 minutes of fame
at some point in their lives, but members of the Texas A&M com
munity can get more than two hours worth Tuesday and
Wednesday evening at “FAME - The Musical.”
Based on the original 1980 Academy Award-winning film, the
musical chronicles the four-year journey of a group of students at
a New York City performing arts high school as they strive to
achieve stardom.
Anne Black, executive direc
tor for MSC OPAS, said the
decision to bring “Fame” to
A&M for the first time was
based largely on the musical’s
high survey rankings among
college students.
“(‘Fame’) appeals to stu
dents because it’s about young
people (who are) pursuing their
dreams,” Black said.
The high-intensity show fea
tures a broad range of musical
styles, including pop, rap, top
40 and gospel. Dance numbers
range from solos to group num
bers, as performers act out the
stories of the highs and lows
while pursuing fame.
Cast member Kiira Schmidt,
a 23-year-old musical theatre
graduate of Elon University, plays the ballet dancer Iris, who is
admitted to the school as a late applicant and ends up in a
romance with fellow student Tyrone. Schmidt described the ener
gy onstage as “high-octane” and “super intense.”
“There is a pretty wide range of songs to go along with the
wide range of characters,” Shmidt said. “The group numbers are
huge, fun, fast dance numbers.”
Schmidt, who said she’s been a dancer ever since she could
walk, joined the cast of “Fame' in August as an ensemble mem
ber. She stepped into the role of Iris in early March after the orig
inal performer suffered a broken foot. Although performing seven
oreight shows a week can sometimes be exhausting, Schmidt said
her job is a dream come true.
"Once the lights come up onstage, I realize there’s nowhere
elsel’d rather be," she said. “There is never a dull moment; it’s
pretty intense."
Schmidt said the two acts are entertaining to audiences in dif
Photo Courtesy of • MSC OPAS
Kiira Shmidt (center), who plays the young aspiring ballerina Iris, completes a dance set in the Broadway musical "Fame." The production is brought to
Texas A&M by The Memorial Student Center OPAS, and will hit the Rudder Auditorium stage Wed. and Tues. night.
ferent ways.
In the first act, audience members will be impressed by the
production itself, while in the second, they will start to fall in love
with the characters.
“In the second act, the characters start to mature, and the sto
ries become a little deeper; the stakes are raised,” she said.
Senior journalism major Deborah Morales said she and her
roommate rented the movie “Fame” over the weekend in antici
pation of seeing the musical this week. Morales said the finale
brings back memories of dancing in high school, when her dance
team performed to the musical’s theme song in its spring show.
“I wanted to see the musical because 1 have danced all my
life,” she said. “(My roommate) loves musicals, and I am more
into the dance stuff.”
Tickets are still available for both showings, Tuesday and
Wednesday at 7:30 p.m., and can be purchased through the MSC
box office.
“Fame” has been touring nationwide and in Canada since
September and is set to finish during the summer.
TICKETS
on sale now
SOUL GRAVY
MEET CROSS CANADIAN RAGWEED TOMORROW
CROSS CANAD|AH R AGWEED
Aoss
igi|
Noon at Hastings, 2004 Texas Avenue
South, College Station. Get their new CD
Soul Gravy with FREE concert DVD
autographed. Limited edition DVD
(footage shot right here in College Station)
available now.
©2004 Universal-south Records, llc / www.crosscanadianragweed.com / www.universal-south.com
CROSS CANADIAN
£ [jfA
RAGWEED
Saturday, March 13,
ij ®I#I
7:30pm
4 |f ^
KELLY CLARKSON
Wednesday, March 17,
7:30pm
KC AND THE
SUNSHINE BAND
Friday, March 19,
7:30pm
DJANGO AND
JERRY JEFF WALKER
Thursday, March 25,
7:30pm
Visit RodeoAustin.com for a full
listing of concerts and events.
Tickets for all shows are on sale
now while they last.
TUAS
F AI R &
March 13-27,2004 RODEO
Austin, Texas Hold on lor ttie Hide.
Travis County
Expo Center
For more information, and to order tickets, call 512-477-6060,
visit any participating HEB store, or visit RodeoAustin.com.
SOUTHWEST
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