In their culminating event of the year, Geneseo's Musical Theatre Club (MTC) entertained packed crowds last Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights in the Alice Austin Theater with their review called MTC Gone Wild.
Members of the club sang popular songs from famous Broadway hits like Wild Party, Rent, Avenue Q and Cats, always adding a distinctly Geneseo flair to each number. This performance acted as a way not only to showcase new talent, but also to give senior members a chance to perform for friends and family one last time before graduating.
The show began with an introduction by the MTC officers, seniors Stephanie Remick, president, Jordan VanBrink, secretary, and Jason Gonser, treasurer, as well as junior Dave Gordon, vice president. To the tune of "Daughters of Triton" from the Little Mermaid they sang their names and prepared the audience for the show, much to the delight of the crowd, especially the alumni in the front row.
The first selection was the title song from Wild Party, and though it was early in the night the entire club put an intense amount of effort and passion into its execution. Members were dressed in every costume imaginable from a graduate in cap and gown to a ballerina and even a pimp. The music was upbeat and lively, and the choreography well executed. It was met with approval from the audience, whose enthusiasm would run high throughout the remainder of the night.
"Coffee Break" from How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying was another popular song for its truthful message as well as the hilarious performance. The scene opened with several haggard looking workers who started up at the cry of "COFFEE BREAK!" from offstage, only to sink into hunched spasms and panic as sophomore Danny Carroll, playing a fellow office member, revealed that unfortunately there was "no coffee." What followed was an ode to the workers addiction to caffeine that left audience members laughing as the performers shook their empty mugs, collapsed on stage and even chanted in circles all for a lack of that "one chemical substance [that] gets out the lead.'"
Potentially the most hilarious part of the show was the number "Jellicle Cats" from Andrew Lloyd Weber's classic musical Cats. MTC members began singing dressed in several types of black feline costumes until a shout of stop was heard from onstage, and a member casually noted "We all know that Cats sucks ass!" MTC cleared the stage without finishing, though Carroll, in a hilarious display of maintaining his feline character, refused to leave and instead hid in a box until a fellow member threatened to spray him with water, a typical punishment for disobedient cats. He returned later, still in costume, during a skit about the club's pianist Crystal Mosher. He continued entertaining the audience with his refusal to break character despite the abandonment of Cats by the rest of the club.
One of the most powerful singers of the night was junior Christiana Shorter who gave a fantastic rendition of the song "Patience" from Dreamgirls. It was a very soulful and intense piece to which she added a great deal of her own power and passion. Shorter was an impressive force in several songs that night, but this was by far her most memorable and strongest number.
MTC Gone Wild concluded with the senior members performing "For Now" from the musical Avenue Q. Wearing shirts with the message "MTC Seniors…Last Call," they sang about the fleetingness of events in life, and ended by sitting on the edge of the stage holding hands with each other. It was a touching finish to a truly unforgettable show.
Overall, MTC Gone Wild was a complete success, and finished to the rousing applause and cheers of a full house. The choreography, costumes, lights and of course voices of Geneseo's most talented performers of musical theater were all outstanding. Only the issue of volume was a difficulty for audience members; several times, it was hard to make out the exact lyrics of a song, especially for those furthest from the stage. Otherwise, MTC Gone Wild was a truly memorable event for this year's cast of MTC, as well as for the Geneseo campus and community. More information about MTC can found at http://mtc.geneseo.edu/.