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Marian Actors to perform ‘Ruthless, The Musical’


Chicago Heights, IL—(ENEWSPF)— Imagine if someone took the classic Hollywood stalwarts The Bad Seed, All About Eve, Gypsy, The Women and Valley of the Dolls, added extra double doses of blood, venom and hilarity and gave it a whirl in a blender. What, you may ask, might one come up with? The answer, gentle reader, would be Ruthless!: The Musical, Marian Catholic High School ’s high-camp fall play.

Ruthless!, the brainchild of lyricist Joal Paley and composer Marvin Laird, first saw the lights of Off-Broadway in 1992. The part of Tina Denmark, the ruthless little thespian who will do anything to get the lead in the school play Pippi in Tahiti, was played by Laura Bell Bundy (soon to create the role of Elle Woods in the Broadway musical Legally Blonde). It should be noted, however, that her understudies- Natalie Portman and Britney Spears- would achieve some fame, too.

Marian’s Tina will be played by Mollyanne Nunn, barely having taken a breath since last spring’s 42nd St. , with her nemesis from that show, Jaime Patriarca, as Tina’s mother Judy. Complicating the action are Chris Skurka as talent agent SylviaSimon St. Croix, Megan McDonnel as both third-grade teacher Myrna Thorn and musical-hating critic Lita Encore, Julie Zielinski as untalented little Louise Lerman and hapless personal assistant Eve, and Gina Ceragioli as intrepid reporter Miss Block.

…or at least that’s how it appears at the beginning of Act I. By the end of Act II, you will feel like the one who’s gone through the blender!

Rounding out the cast are Will Blewitt, Amy Czarobski, Rachel Greenbaum, Conor Keane, Adam King, Greg Rossbach, Sarah Santos and Bernadette Senick.

Mark Donaway directs the play with musical direction by Michelle Howisen, choreography by student Skurka, and technical direction by Bernard Jablonski. The band will be conducted by Vonda Hardesty.

Performances are Friday, Nov. 7, and Saturday, Nov. 8 at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, Nov. 9 at 2 p.m. Marian’s theater, Croarkin Hall, is located in Chicago Heights on Joe Orr Road , just west of Joe Orr’s intersection with Ashland Ave. Tickets are $8, and may be bought at the door or obtained by calling 708-756-9443. Tickets will be available for purchase beginning Oct. 27.

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