Director and senior Caleb Blackerby said the team has been working tirelessly for months to piece together this production.
“I actually started working on ‘Legally Blonde’ last March,” Blackerby said. “It’s sort of my job to shepherd the production start to finish. It’s all starting to come together right now, so it’s kind of ?exciting.”
Musical Director Brandon Porter said, from the outset, there was great interest in the show. His job included seeing each of the auditions and callbacks to decide the final cast.
“As the music director, I helped when we started the rehearsal process,” Porter said. “I was part of the production team that saw the auditions, and we had about 90 people audition for the show.”
After the initial auditions, Porter said he gave those who earned callbacks musical numbers to learn. Kayla Eilers, a junior who plays the lead of Elle Woods, said this production was one of the most vocally challenging she has been a part of.
“In the beginning, just because it is so vocally demanding, I was a little worried. I kept asking, “Am I going to be able to do this?” Eilers said. “As rehearsals have been going, it has been getting better ?and better.”
Eilers said this role excited her because the part of Elle Woods holds a very special place in ?her heart.
“Elle Woods has always been a dream role of mine,” Eilers said. “When I heard they were doing ‘Legally Blonde,’ I thought, ‘Why not try out?’ It’s one my favorite shows, (and) it’s so much fun, very energetic and hilarious. It’s a really ?good time.”
Sophomore choreographer Kelly MacMillan said the process of choreographing for the show was a challenge as well. She said her overarching goal is to create a routine people will become excited about.
“It is always hard to put yourself out there with choreography because cast and the audience members are all so subjective,” MacMillan said. “However, keeping a positive attitude and being confident to what I brought to the table really helped me overcome my own self doubt.”
Porter confirmed that, because University Players does not usually work with teams of this size, the show was especially trying.
“It’s been very difficult working with 30 people, getting them all on the same track and getting them to be positive,” he said. “It is also a very difficult show with a lot of music (and) very difficult choreography. Rehearsals have been top notch. We’ve never had time to sit back.”
Porter said his experience with this show has been a positive one, which he attributes to his passion for musical direction.
“It’s totally what I love to do, it’s what I want to do with my life,” Porter said. “I am pursuing a degree in musical direction. I want to do professional music direction on Broadway. University Players has given me a wonderful opportunity to learn the skills that it takes to be a musical director of a large scale musical, which is just very nice.”
Porter said he played Warner Huntington III, Elle Woods’ romantic interest, in his high school’s production of the musical, saw the show live and frequently listened to the soundtrack when he was younger. Because of those experiences, he said he is extremely ?familiar with the score.
“Working on a production of it here is much different and I was very lucky to work on it in high school,” Porter said.
Blackerby said the show closely mirrors the popular film, though the script takes on a more theatrical approach with the addition of musical numbers that exaggerate the movie’s ?well-known scenes.
“It follows the same story with some theater quirks thrown in,” Blackerby said.
Blackerby said he made the decision to stage “Legally Blonde” when he saw the popularity of last year’s University Players production of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.”
“Last year, we were looking for a project that would get us to a larger audience base,” Blackerby said. “(At Rocky Horror) we saw about 2,200 people. In order to replicate that, you have to do something big-name. We were just looking at which ones spoke to us the most. ‘Legally Blonde’ just sort of stuck out in every aspect.”
Porter said he hopes the familiarity the audience has with the story line helps make the show more attractive to patrons looking for a good time.
“I just really want people to have fun and love it as much as they can,” Porter said. “Whenever I work on a University Players show, I always hope that people really have an appreciation for what student theater is. It’s must different than what’s put on by IU theatre and drama.”
University Players is a student-run group ?independent of the IU Theatre, Drama and Contemporary Dance department, so funds for shows like this one must be raised independently as well. Blackerby said he is grateful Union Board helped in that area.
“We’re a student organization,” Blackerby said. “We rehearse 20-plus hours a week on top of everything you have to do otherwise. When a musical goes out through the IU Theatre Department, you have funding. Union Board has funded this production. It’s challenging, but we enjoy every bit of it.”
Blackerby said he hopes the audience really enjoys the lively production that he, the cast and crew have spent endless hours ?putting together.
“The show itself is a really good reminder theater can be really fun,” Blackerby said. “With ‘Legally Blonde,’ it’s just fun. It’s high-energy. It gives everyone something they can enjoy.”
Porter said that though there have been small challenges, he is truly proud of the final product.
“It has been a crazy, crazy process and it will be a phenomenal production with an awesome cast,” Porter said. “I just hope that this show will be very successful.”
MacMillan agreed with Porter that the cast of this show is full of gifted students.
“People should come see the show because of the amazing group of ?people working on the show,” MacMillan said. “The cast and crew are all so incredibly gifted and really have created something truly ?amazing.”
The show begins at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 30, 31 and Nov. 1, in addition to an 11:59 p.m. showing Oct. 31. Tickets are $12 for adults and $6 for ?students.
