Optimist
  • News
  • Sports
  • Opinion
    • Columns
    • Editorials
    • Letters to the Editor
  • Features
    • Book Review
  • Multimedia
    • Photo Galleries
    • Videos
  • Police Log
  • Print Edition
  • Projects
  • Classifieds
  • About
    • Advertise
    • Policies
    • Staff Contacts
    • Jobs
You are here: Home / News / Actors bring authentic twist to musical

Actors bring authentic twist to musical

October 14, 2011 by Zane Goggans

Homecoming is bringing more than just a football game for the Wildcats; it also heralds another ACU tradition, the Homecoming musical.

This year’s Homecoming musical is The King and I, a story based on Margaret Landon’s 1944 novel, Anna and the King of Siam. The story draws from the true memoirs of Anna Leonowens in the 1800s. Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II wrote the music for The King and I. Students have worked on the set and rehearsed for the musical since the first day of school in late August. They will perform three shows this weekend at the Abilene Civic Center downtown.

2011-10-13-08-18-21

Amanda Jarufe, junior musical theater and education major of Coppell, plays the stirring role of Tuptim, one of the king's wives, in The King and I, the 2011 homecoming musical held at the Abilene Civic Center. (Optimist photo by Adrian Patenaude)

Every year, the Department of Theatre goes through a process to choose which plays will they will produce the coming year.

“We wanted to do something different from the other years,” said assistant professor, Kari Hatfield, who serves as director for The King and I. “We all agreed to go back to a classic, and this is the show everybody kept coming back to.”

For the Homecoming musical, only college students usually are chosen to play roles in the play. However, this musical adds some younger performers in addition to the main, college-aged roles. The musical boasts 22 children from the Abilene community to play small roles throughout the performance.

“We had open auditions for children over the summer and advertised here on campus and all over Abilene,” Hatfield said. “We came up with 22 kids who are enthusiastic.”

Because the musical is derived from real people in a historical place in time, actors underwent research covering the culture of Siam, now  Thailand, to enrich their performance and to bring a more authentic feel to the performance. The cast received help from Thai students and from missions coordinator, Larry Henderson, in order to become more familiar with the culture of the Thai people.

“We did a lot of research because if this is done in a wrong way, it can be offensive to people,” said Seth Womack, junior musical theatre major from Justin. “We wanted to justly represent the people of Siam. We even had some actors learn phrases in Thai, which is not called for in the script, but we wanted to make it authentic for the audience.”

Womack also said he has done more research for his role, Lun Pha, than he has done for any other role he has performed.

Performances of The King and I begin tonight at 8 p.m. at the Abilene Civic Center. The other two performances will be Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. Ticket prices and other information can be found by calling 325-674-ARTS.

“Everyone is welcome,” Hatfield said. “Come and support this tradition.”

Filed Under: News, Showcase Tagged With: Homecoming

Other News:

  • Engineering department adapts ride-in car for local boy

  • McCracken gets slice at dream role in ‘Sweeney Todd’

  • Wessel to welcome residential faculty as Sikes set to close for renovations

About Zane Goggans

You are here: Home / News / Actors bring authentic twist to musical

Other News:

  • Engineering department adapts ride-in car for local boy

  • McCracken gets slice at dream role in ‘Sweeney Todd’

  • Wessel to welcome residential faculty as Sikes set to close for renovations

Follow us online

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Optimist on Twitter

acuoptimist The Optimist @acuoptimist ·
16 Feb

Black Student Union, the Office of Multicultural Affairs and the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion have joined together to plan events that educate others and provide celebrations during Black History Month. Read more:
https://acuoptimist.com/2023/02/black-history-month-events-educate-celebrate-acu-community/

Reply on Twitter 1626340622872285184 Retweet on Twitter 1626340622872285184 Like on Twitter 1626340622872285184 2 Twitter 1626340622872285184
acuoptimist The Optimist @acuoptimist ·
11 Feb

BREAKING: Robert D. “Bob” Hunter, vice president emeritus, passed away Saturday. Hunter served as a representative of the 71st district of Texas and worked part time with ACU until 2013.

Reply on Twitter 1624540404690436097 Retweet on Twitter 1624540404690436097 4 Like on Twitter 1624540404690436097 23 Twitter 1624540404690436097

Optimist on Facebook

The Optimist

1 week ago

The Optimist
Meet our News Writer Matthew!He is a sophomore journalism major from Cedar Park, Tx. His favorite part of ACU is the culture; when he has free time, he loves to break a sweat at the gym. -----------------------------#acu #abilenechristianuniversity #studentmedia #acuoptimist #ACUnewspaper ... See MoreSee Less

Photo

View on Facebook
· Share

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email

The Optimist

2 weeks ago

The Optimist
Next for Optimist staff introductions is our photographer Sarah. "Hello! My name is Sarah Eunyoung Thompson and I’m originally from Ewa Beach, Hawaii. I am here as a sophomore majoring in graphic design. Some of my favorite hobbies include: art, ping pong, photography, singing, and thrifting." ... See MoreSee Less

Photo

View on Facebook
· Share

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email

Videos

Optimist Newscast Feb. 22, 2023

Our top stories this week include the passing of Dr. Bob Hunter, a new endowment ... [Read More…]

  • Optimist Newscast Feb. 8, 2023
  • Optimist Newscast Feb. 1, 2023
  • Optimist Newscast Jan. 25, 2023

Latest Photos

  • Home
  • Podcasts

© 2023 ACU Optimist · All Rights Reserved