Elegies: A Song Cycle

University Theatre opens its second show of the season on Friday, November 13, 2020 at 7:30 PM with Elegies: A Song Cycle by William Finn. Dr. Maria Fenty Denison is the production’s director. Amanda Beagle provides music direction, and Amy A. Wright is the choreographer. Additional performances are November 14 and 15 at 2:00 PM and 7:30 PM; November 20 at 7:30 PM; and November 21 and 22 at 2:00 PM and 7:30 PM.

Written by Tony Award-winning lyricist and composer, William Finn, this heart-felt song cycle addresses memory and loss with both compassion and humor, reminding the viewer of life’s fragility and joy. A song cycle is a group of songs designed to be performed in sequence as a single entity. Usually all of the songs are by the same composer and reference a particular theme or story.

“In Elegies we found a show full of opportunity, infused with hope, and practical for the times. Due to current safety protocols for theatre, students gained training in fields that they may not have otherwise. The dedication of the creative team has been incredible, and we are grateful for their hard work as we make this performance come alive,” said Maria Fenty Denison.

The cast includes Torrance Bajuszick, (Saxonburg, PA) Theatre/Musical Theatre; Leah Beckert (Sharon, PA) Theatre Studies; Savannah Bell (Ambridge, PA) Theatre; Lexi Cerny (Pittsburgh, PA) Theatre/Musical Theatre; Machiah Davis (Beachwood, OH) Theatre/Musical Theatre; Lexi Denney (Canfield, OH) Theatre/Musical Theatre; Adrienne Day (Youngstown, OH) Dance Management; Adam Dominick (Lancaster, OH) Theatre/Musical Theatre; Belle Elliot (DeGraff, OH) Theatre/Musical Theatre; Lacey Farina (Schenectady, NY) Theatre/Musical Theatre; Samantha Gurd (New Middletown, OH) Theatre/Musical Theatre; Erica Hays (Newport, OH) Dance Management; Cassidy Hopkins (Erie, PA) Exercise Science; Kyle Hudson (Kensington, OH) Theatre Studies; Morgan LaCamera (Lowellville, OH) Theatre; Noah Landry (Poland, OH) Saxophone Performance; Destiny Magee (Columbus, OH) Dance Management; Mia Matthews (Columbus, OH) Dance Management; Sydney Moore (Braddock, PA) Dance Management; Taryn Patterson (New Waterford, OH) Psychology; Hannah Rosser (Youngstown, OH) Theatre Studies; Donovan Rubante (Edenburg, PA) Theatre/Musical Theatre; Kamryn Rudolph (Weedville, PA) Theatre/Musical Theatre; Dagmar Stahl (Canfield, OH) Dance Management; Destinee Thompson (Akron, OH) Theatre/Musical Theatre; Haley Tura (Canfield, OH) Vocal Music Education.

In addition, guest artists include veteran local actors, Maureen Collins, James McClellan, and YSU faculty member Kivie Cahn-Lipman.

Collins is co-founder of Easy Street Productions, a Youngstown theater troupe that has been entertaining in the Valley for 33 years. Her many duties include teaching children’s workshops and preparing new generations for the theater world. Her favorite roles include Dolly Levi, Miss HANNIGAN, Mrs. Potts, the narrator in Joseph, as well as Patsy Cline in the local premiere of Always Patsy Cline. Easy Street started in 1988 with the musical Pumpboys and Dinettes that played for a record breaking 200 performances at the Uptown Theater. Their holiday offering Miracle on Easy Street is celebrating its 33rd year with a television special, which will air on WFMJ this December due to pandemic restrictions.

McClellan has spent his life performing in association with the Mahoning Valley’s various community theaters and arts organizations, among them Easy Street Productions, Ballet Western Reserve, The Youngstown Playhouse, Oakland Center for the Arts, and Youngstown State University Theatre. Notable shows in which he has appeared include Little Shop of Horrors, The Elephant Man, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Into the Woods, Love! Valour! Compassion!, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, I Am My Own Wife, The Normal Heart, and Angels in America: Millennium Approaches.

Cahn-Lipman holds degrees from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, The Juilliard School, and the University of Cincinnati. He is the founding cellist of the International Contemporary Ensemble—with which he performs regularly to international critical acclaim—as well as founder, lironist, and director of the baroque string band ACRONYM and gambist with the viol consort LeStrange. Kivie appears on more than forty recordings on labels including Nonesuch, Naxos, New Focus, New Amsterdam, New World, Tzadik, ArsPublica, Kairos, Mode, Tundra, Starkland, Olde Focus, Canteloupe, Stradivarius, and ECM, and his recording of the complete Cello Suites of J.S. Bach was praised for its "eloquent performances," "fresh thinking," and "energy and zeal" (The Strad). As a chamber musician, he has performed frequently in Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, and other major venues on four continents, as well as live on WNYC 93.9 in New York and WFMT 98.7 in Chicago. Kivie taught cello at Smith and Mount Holyoke Colleges from 2005-2012 and at The College of New Jersey from 2015-2017, and he has been on the faculty of the Cortona Sessions for New Music each summer since 2012. He joined the faculty of the Dana School of Music in 2017.

In addition to the Director, Music Director and Choreographer, technical staff includes Properties Designer, Wendy Akers; Sound Recording Engineer, Jack Ciarniello; Scenic Designer, Todd Dicken; Video Production Supervisor, Ryan Donchess; Production Manager and Technical Director, Ryan Fitzpatrick; Virtual Choir Conductor, Brendan Gage; Costume and Makeup Designer, Katherine N. Garlick; Video Production Coordinator, Miles Douglas Garrett; and Lighting Designer, Tim Grich.