Curtain will rise on "She Loves Me" at Southern Virginia University
Christina Himes ·
October 27, 2009
Two people work contentiously at the same shop. He has an
anonymous pen pal admirer. So does she. What do you know? They fall in love
with each other through their letters while arguing at the shop!
This lighthearted plot provides the framework of Southern
Virginia University’s upcoming musical, She
Loves Me, slated to run Friday and Saturday, November 6-7 and Thursday,
Friday and Saturday, November 12-14.
If the plot sounds familiar, maybe you have seen Meg Ryan and
Tom Hanks in You’ve Got Mail or you’ve
watched the 1940 Jimmy Stewart film, The
Shop around the Corner, both based on the same story. A charming, “jewel
box musical,” She Loves Me opened on
Broadway in 1963 and returned for a year-long revival in 1994. The songs,
written by the same clever team that brought us the much-loved Fiddler on the Roof, are charming and
personal, giving us a glimpse into the characters and their situations.
“Magic of another kind—that’s what this style of musical
creates,” according to director Robert Stoddard. It offers a stretch for
college actors because it doesn’t rely on flashiness or clichés. “It’s a
challenge they need to have, and they’re rising to the occasion,” Stoddard
said.
Megan Kline, a power-house singer in a pint-sized package,
plays leading lady Amalia Balash. Kyle Nielsen, back in Chandler Hall after a
two-year hiatus serving a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints, plays her unwitting beau, Georg Nowack. He last appeared in a leading role in Crazy for You in 2007. Audiences who recently enjoyed A Midsummer Nights’ Dream will get a
treat seeing Jeff Gasser, Kaitlin Cluff, Nathan Taylor and Nate Pence (last
spring’s exuberant Cat in the Hat), in very different roles.
Audiences can bask in the charm of this funny, honest little
love story for two weekends at Chandler Hall on the Southern Virginia
University campus. The play starts at 8 p.m. on November 6, 7, 12 and 14.
Curtain time is 8:30 p.m. on Friday, November 13. General admission tickets are $7. Southern Virginia students
with ID are $5, seniors are $5, and you can bring the whole family for $25.