Majestic Repertory Theatre concludes its inaugural season with the Las Vegas premiere of CARRIE THE MUSICAL, based on the classic novel by Stephen King.
With book by original “Carrie” screenwriter Lawrence D. Cohen, music by Michael Gore (“Fame”) and lyrics by Dean Pitchford (“Footloose”), CARRIE THE MUSICAL was a notorious flop during its 1988 Broadway run, lasting only five performances. The material was revisited in 2012 in preparation for an Off-Broadway run where songs were cut and replaced and the entire book restructured. The new version of CARRIE THE MUSICAL became a harrowing vision that will only be enhanced by the intimate confines of Majestic Rep.
Carrie White is a misfit. At school, she’s an outcast who’s bullied by the popular crowd, and virtually invisible to everyone else. At home, she’s at the mercy of her loving but cruelly over-protective mother. But Carrie’s just discovered she’s got a special power, and if pushed too far, she’s not afraid to use it…
“Columbine is our base line in this production,” says director Troy Heard. “In a society where our teens are viciously bullied to a breaking point of violence, whether self-inflicted or outwardly so, the cast and I chose to take a very serious approach to this production. Most people associate CARRIE with the blood bucket at the prom, but there is so much more besides that. The real horror comes from our seemingly limitless ability to inflict pain on our fellow man. Needless to say this is not a campy Carrie.”
Professional actress Annette Houlihan Verdolino plays the fervently religious Mrs. White, while the teens are cast from various high schools, including the award-winning Las Vegas Academy of the Arts – featuring LVA senior Arianna Mercy as Carrie White.
Performances of CARRIE THE MUSICAL will be May 4 through 28; show times are 8 p.m. Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, and 5 p.m. on Sundays. Majestic Repertory Theatre performs at 1217 S. Main Street. General admission tickets are $27 and are on sale now at www.majesticrepertory.com.
